


Loving You Is Magical

by Krystal_Amethyst



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Cute, First Meetings, Fluff, Human AU, Human Thor (Marvel), M/M, POV Thor (Marvel), Sort Of, Teasing, That'll come later so don't worry too much about it, They're still superheroes but minus the Gods thing, secret agent AU, tags will be added as the story goes on
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-11
Updated: 2019-11-10
Packaged: 2020-01-11 20:19:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18431369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Krystal_Amethyst/pseuds/Krystal_Amethyst
Summary: Thor meets the love of his life. Now he just has to figure out how to tell him that he has superpowers, or maybe they can live the rest of their beautiful lives without having to bring that up.Loki has a few secrets of his own.





	1. There's something about you

**Author's Note:**

> This is only a Prologue. A bit longer than I expected.

They first met in an art exhibit.

 

It was hosted by a businessman who had previous connections to the underground business but wanted to turn over a new leaf and became a philantrophist. SHIELD believed he was being targeted for his intel, so their team was sent to stop any assassination attempt, which would hopefully convince the man to share what he knows in exchange for their protection.

 

It was a standard job. One that left Thor bored out of his mind. It might have been unprofessional of him, but they've dealt with more serious cases and Natasha and Steve obviously have this one in the bag.

 

Doesn't mean he wasn't doing his job though. He was just not as participative. And it's not like he was the worst one of all of them; he heard Tony stifle a yawn through the intercoms. He at least kept an eye out on the other guests in case his friends missed something.

 

It was why he didn't think much of it when they first locked eyes. Thor's gaze was naturally drawn to the slim, charismatic figure that seemed to be give to the party. The long dark hair that framed a pretty face with mischievous green eyes had Thor's gaze lingering.

 

When their eyes met, there were a few moments of them staring at each other broken only when the brunet gave him a once-over.

 

He was being checked out. Thor couldn't help but smirk in triumph, earning an eye-roll from the beautiful specimen that caught his attention, but the amused smile gave him away.

 

" _Tony, I swear to God_." Steve growled through the intercoms. Thor hadn't really been paying attention but he could guess it was because Tony yawned for the nth time that evening.

 

" _What? It's not like anything exciting's going to happen!_ "

 

" _Would it kill you to be a little professional?_ "

 

" _Wow, we've known each other for three years and it's like you've never met me._ "

 

" _Tony, I get that it's a slow mission_." Nat piped up. " _But that doesn't mean you should let your guard down, you know that's how people get killed. You need to pay attention._ "

 

" _Pay atten- I am paying attention! I literally have my eyes on every nook and cranny of this joint._ " he said incredulously. " _Thor's the one who's too busy trying to get laid!_ "

 

Thor was, understandably, taken back by this. He turned away from the party to press a hand on his ear and discretely spoke. "Excuse me?"

 

" _Oh, don't play innocent on me, Point Break. I saw you making googly eyes on Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Handsome over there._ "

 

" _I, uh…_ " Bruce's hesitant voice spoke up. During missions like these, they were usually just tech support and worked together from afar. " _I… also saw that._ "

 

" _Same here._ " Clint said, his voice echoing since he was in the vents.

 

"I am keeping an eye on all the guests in case one of them turns out to be a spy." he said defensively. "If my gaze just so happens to linger on one of them, it's only because they're someone suspicious."

 

" _Suspiciously sexy, you mean._ " Tony snorted.

 

" _Tony…_ " Steve said, voice coated with exasperation.

 

" _I literally have physical video evidence of my claims, Rogers, not to mention two other eyewitnesses. So don't you 'Tony' me._ "

 

A sigh. " _Thor, please focus on the mission and set an example for the kids._ "

 

" _Oh, haha, Rogers._ "

 

" _Tony, please…_ " Bruce said.

 

"Aye aye, captain." Thor replied, tone serious despite the amused smile on his face.

 

" _He said that while looking straight at Pretty Boy!_ "

 

" _Tony…_ "

 

Thor chuckled, since that accusation was 100% correct but could you blame him? The brunet had returned his attention to his companions but Thor caught him sneaking glances his way.

 

" _See?! He's not even trying to deny it!_ "

 

" _Thor, if you're acting like this on a mission then you're either really horny today or this guy must be really cute._ " Natasha sounded amused.

 

" _I can tell you it's the latter._ " Clint said. “ _Or maybe both. Who am I to say?_ ”

 

" _Get me a picture, I wanna see him._ "

 

" _Nat…_ " the betrayal in Steve's tone almost had Thor bursting out laughing.

 

" _Already did._ "

 

" _Can everyone please focus?_ "

 

" _Can I just say, this wouldn't have happened if you had singled me out._ "

 

" _Oh- Incoming._ " Clint suddenly spoke up, and the entire team immediately got serious. Thor's eyes briefly scanned the room before almost automatically zeroing in on who Clint was definitely talking about. Two men, not walking together but whose body language distinguished them from the crowd, were making a beeline towards their target. Thor's trained eye also caught their hands moving instinctively to their sides. Weapons, most definitely guns. Steve and Nat would most likely deal with them easily, so that left the rest to look after the civilians.

 

" _I'm activating the fire alarm._ " Tony said, and despite being a statement, it was his way of asking for Steve's ok.

 

" _Granted. Nat and I will-_ "

 

He didn't get to finish when an explosion shook the whole building.

 

" _Shit!_ "

 

" _Well, nevermind the fire alarms then._ "

 

" _Nat, secure the target! Clint, take down our two marks. Non-lethally._ "

 

" _On it._ "

 

" _Bummer._ "

 

" _Thor, evacuate the civilians._ "

 

"I'd say they're doing a pretty good job on it themselves." Thor said, looking around the hall that had erupted into chaos. Well, at least they were all getting out of the building without causing a serious stampede. "I'll go see what caused that ruckus."

 

" _Yeah, you do that, Point Break. 'cause we're blind to whatever's going on in the West Wing._ "

 

" _We're picking up sound, but it's all a garbled mess._ " Bruce explained. " _It's plausible that our marks have backup though._ "

 

" _Thor, proceed with caution. This mission's been labeled a Level Two so we're not authorized to issue a Code Red._ "

 

" _As if I could forget._ " he grumbled before making his way through the crowd of panicking civilians.

 

Tony sent him the location, and he made his way there, pulling out his gun when he got away from civilian sight.

 

Now, if anyone were to ask Thor after this incident, he’d defend himself by saying that it was a Level Two mission and so you can’t blame him for underestimating their opponents at the time. It was a rookie mistake, one that almost gotten him killed, but, hey. He lived and learned his lesson and isn’t that what matters?

 

He got ambushed. Four men; one of them sneaked up on him from behind and he beat him fairly quickly, but not before the others closed in on him. In the future, Thor would’ve told anyone that he had the situation under control. But the fact was, he took down two of them but thought he had taken down three. He was working on the fourth guy when the third got up, pulled out a gun, and pointed to shoot.

 

Only he didn’t get to because the third guy got hit in the head with a vase, which was enough for Thor and the fourth guy to pause in their little brawl to turn their heads toward him in shock. Luckily, Thor was a professional and regained his composure very quickly, head-butting his opponent hard enough to render him unconscious before looking around to see where the _fuck_ that vase came from.

 

He came face to face to the man Tony had earlier dubbed as Mr. Tall-Dark-And-Handsome. His eyes were wide, as if shocked at what he just did and he stared back at Thor, out of breath. Thor figured he had run out from the main hall but what the hell was he doing here?

 

Thor was immediately on guard. Since this man just saved his life- although he really had everything under control- he would really hate it if he turned out to be a bad guy.

 

They stared at each other for the longest time before the brunet swallowed, finally catching his breath and spoke. “You, uh… are you alright?”

 

Thor paused. “Yes.”

 

He nodded, albeit hesitantly. “That’s… good.”

 

Thor eyed him. It doesn’t seem like he had any weapons on him. Or if he did, he wasn’t making any move to get it, although he _was_ tensed up, as if ready for a fight. But considering the circumstances, Thor couldn’t really blame him.

 

“What are you still doing in the building?”

 

“What are _you_?” he retorted. Thor raised an eyebrow at him, and it was enough to make him falter. People had always said that he had a commanding aura, even if he didn’t mean to. “I… After the ruckus, I tried to get outside, but I saw how people were panicking and didn’t want to risk getting trampled over if a stampede broke out. I figured there had to be another exit and well, the hall to this wing was my second nearest escape route at the time.”

 

Thor nodded. That made sense. He gave the man one last once-over before motioning jerking his head to the side.

 

“C’mon, there should be an exit here somewhere.” He walked up to him, gently grabbing his arm to guide him, recalling the building’s layout which they’re required to memorize for every mission. Thank God for protocol at least. “It’s not safe to be alone, so I’ll take you outside and join the crowd. Stay away from the building for now, probably stick close to the police when they arrive and keep an eye out for anyone suspicious.”

 

He nodded almost looking dazed. And they were silent for a while as he let Thor guide him through the halls.

 

“… Thanks, by the way.” Thor spoke up. “For saving me back there.”

 

He blinked. “Don’t mention it.”

 

“I was kind of hoping you won’t, actually.” He said sheepishly. “My friends would never let me live this down if they ever find out.”

 

He laughed, and Thor never thought such an act could be done so elegantly.

  
“I won’t tell a soul.” He smiled slyly and Thor returned it with a shit-eating grin of his own.

 

“My name’s Thor, by the way.”

 

“Thor…” he said, as if testing how it felt on his tongue. “Loki.”

 

“Loki.” He couldn’t quite help feeling giddy. “I wish I’d walked up to you earlier. At least then we wouldn’t have met in such… unique circumstances.”

 

“Well, at least you can’t say that it wasn’t memorable.” He chuckled.

 

From the very first moment, they just clicked. And no matter what Natasha said afterwards, it wasn’t just because he thought that Loki was gorgeous and wanted to bang him. It might have played a part, but it definitely wasn’t the only reason. Thor considered himself to be a good judge in character, and he could immediately tell that Loki was a delight to be around.

 

Unfortunately, duty calls and Steve called for him in the intercoms. Reluctantly, he let go of Loki’s arm once they got outside and he spotted the crowd of guests from the distance. But he found comfort in the equally disappointed look Loki had.

 

“Stay safe.” He nodded before running back inside, but not before hearing Loki mutter to himself, probably not entirely intending him to hear.

 

“You too… Hope I’ll see you around.”

 

It was a good thing that he got Loki out when he did. Because when Thor got back to check on the four guys he knocked out (Loki later said he didn’t mind that he claimed the credit), he discovered even more of them. Of course, the around two dozen men were all taken out fairly quickly and Thor quickly went to regroup with his friends, as per the Captain’s orders.

 

“Thor! You alright?” Steve asked once he spotted him running towards them. Clint was looking around, standing beside the two men earlier who were now handcuffed to the stairs. Natasha was comforting the target, who looked like he just recovered from a panic attack.

 

“There were a couple men back there, not heavily armed and have now been completely dealt with. I can’t say if there’s anyone who got away though.” Thor reported. “They’re back there, there shouldn’t be any serious injuries.”

 

Steve nodded. “I’ll call them in. Coulson’s on his way. Stark? Anything to report?”

 

“ _I can’t really say where that big boom came from until Coulson retrieves any evidence and brings it back here, but I can tell you that Bruce and I are picking up on something real interesting right now, but you’re going to have to wait until we can confirm it._ ” Tony said. “ _Also, Thor was totally trying to get laid while we were all working._ ”

 

“ _Tony!_ ”

 

“ _What? Bruce, you saw them together!_ ”

 

Thor’s eyes widened and his eyes met with Steve’s which reflected shock, disappointment and betrayal all at once. All of a sudden, Natasha and Clint were standing with them, both smirking.

 

“Really now?”

 

“I was helping a civilian escape, that was Captain Rogers’ orders, was it not?”

 

“ _Helping a civilian escape. Oh please! Do you think we’re stupid, Thor?_ ”

 

“How do you even know that? I thought you said that the cameras in the west wing weren’t working.”

 

“ _Oh, I’m sorry. Were you hoping for a little privacy, hun? Do the dirty while we do some dirty work? You should be ashamed of yourself, Borson!_ ”

 

“ _There was a camera outside working. We thought that the two men exiting the building from the west wing had been… but it turns out- well…_ ”

 

“Thor…” Steve gave him that disappointed look and Thor raised his arms up in a plead for innocence.

 

“I was at the west wing and he also happened to be there, so knowing the area wasn’t completely safe, I escorted him outside and instructed him to join the other civilians to ensure his safety, as per protocol. That’s it.”

 

“ _Bullshit! You were just screwing around!_ ”

 

“There are about two dozen unconscious men back there that would say otherwise, Stark. Feel free to check them out yourself.”

 

“Way to multi-task, Thor.” Clint chuckled.

 

“So, you talked to him?”

 

“He was understandably distressed about the situation and I deemed it fit to try to provide him comfort as you did just now with our target, yes.”

 

“Uh-huh. Did you get his number?”

 

“Agent Romanoff, please. I’m a professional.”

 

“But you got a name, right?” she smirked. “Because you knew that’s all I need to find out more about him, including his schedule and where you can possibly, coincidentally bump into each other.”

 

He did know. But Steve was giving them the look again, so Thor just gave them an innocent look.

 

Steve sighed. “Let’s just- Let’s just wrap this up and go home.”

 

“Aye.”

 

“This isn’t over, Borson.” Natasha leveled him with a look before turning to Clint as they walked back towards their target. “Lemme see what this guy looks like.”

 

Steve turned to Thor with an exasperated look. “I really hope you just happened to be horny today.”

 

“I encounter one fairly good-looking man and you all assume I’ve turned into Stark. I feel like I should be offended.”

 

“ _I, for one, am offended._” Stark said. “ _Now you listen here you beefcake-having ass-bitch-_ “

 

“ _Okay , I think Tony and I should get some rest. We’ll go over everything tomorrow morning._”

 

The intercoms was cut off, Thor and Steve shared a good laugh before they went back to work.

 

Thor had every intention of asking Natasha about Loki the next day, but they got really busy afterwards and he completely forgot about it. And it was safe to assume that they did too.

 

Because a few months later, when Thor returned to the Stark Tower where they were all staying, jaws dropped when they saw the dark-haired man accompanying him.

 

“Everyone.” He greeted with a grin and an arm around his companion’s waist. “I’d like you all to meet Loki.”

 

Jaws dropped and the team only stared at them in shock until Tony slammed his hands on the table.

 

“I knew it! You _did_ make out with him on the job! Steve! Steve, are you fucking seeing this?!”

 

There were groans and laughter all around. From the corner of his eye, Thor saw Loki roll his eyes but the fond smile he tried to suppress was unmistakable, not to mention infectious.

 

What Tony said was completely false obviously, Thor just so happened to be heavily favored by the Gods and so he ran into Loki at a nearby bar a few days after they met. But he didn’t bother to correct them; this was more fun after all.

 

It didn’t help that a certain someone was bringing out his mischievous side lately.


	2. Something You Don't Know About Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thor's backstory + His second meeting with Loki

Thor had dropped out of college at age 22, not because he wasn't good. Everyone could see how well he excelled; it was because he realized that he didn't want to take over the family business. He wanted to do something meaningful with his life. So he ignored his father's arguments and threats, he couldn't care less if they took him out of the will, and he enlisted in the army.

People often said they were envious of how he seemed to be great at no matter what he did, and this was no different. It helped that he had a history of athletic achievements during high school and saw it fit to keep in shape during college. Thor rose through the ranks easily.

Too easily, it seems. Because soon enough, it started to feel as if even the harsh environment provided by the military became mundane and sometimes even questioned the orders he was being given. It lead to him getting into trouble often, and his superiors’ acknowledgement of him as too valuable an asset to them was probably the only reason they kept him around.

It’s too bad that Thor didn’t think the same of them because when SHIELD offered him a job, he couldn’t accept it quickly enough.

 

* * *

 

Thor let out a deep sigh once he got into his car. He, along with the rest of his team, thought the mission at the art gallery was a small-scale, onetime thing. But apparently not, because Tony and Bruce discovered that their target had connections to Hydra which made things a hell of a lot more complicated than they should have been. The entire team had been working on the matter non-stop for the past week and Thor is just about ready to lose his mind. He wasn’t the only one either. In the end, Steve decided that it would be beneficial for the team to have a day off.

Thor didn’t even wait for Steve to finish the announcement before he was running out of the main room and into the elevator to the underground parking lot, shouting his appreciation the whole way. He heard the rest of the team do the same, except for Tony and Bruce who, if he had to guess, probably passed out on the spot. The poor guys took the brunt of the work and Thor was pretty sure that they were running on pure caffeine at this point.

Thor was in a similar state, and he intended to rectify that by replacing all that caffeine with alcohol and he didn’t care whose backyard he ended up in because of it. He’d invite his teammates, but he figured he needed some ‘me time’ after all the work. In any case, Thor can handle himself. It’s not really a big deal.

Fast forward fifteen hours and Thor did not wake up in someone’s backyard, and instead he was lying on a very comfortable bed that was very much not his own. The first thing that registered was the fact that there was someone snuggled up against him, their head tucked comfortably under his chin with Thor’s arm wrapped around a thin waist. From that angle, he could only see long black hair and pale skin peaking over the blankets wrapped around them.

The second thing that registered was that they were both naked. Now, this wasn’t really a bad thing but Thor couldn’t remember anything that happened the night before after he had entered the bar. He must have really gone wild because he couldn’t even remember the last time he got so drunk that his memory failed him. It was probably during his early years in university?

While he was struggling with his hangover, memories, and admittedly ill-timed horniness, the person lying practically on top of him shifted. With a groan, they- he, if the slight stiffness against his thigh is any indication- slowly got up, using his elbows to support him as he raised his head to look at Thor.

He immediately recognized those sharp green eyes, and by the way they widened, Thor figured he recognized him too.

Thor opened his mouth to speak, although he wasn’t really sure what to say. Because really, what were the odds?

“… Hi.” He settled with that.

“…uh, hello.” Loki said, and Thor was grateful that his job required him to be good at remembering names and faces, not that he could ever forget a face like that. Loki seemed to finally realize the position they were in because he suddenly had the cutest blush before scrambling to get up. “Sorry…”

Thor sat up and was about to tell him it was no big deal, but a sharp pain struck through his skull causing him to groan and collapse back onto the bed. He screwed his eyes shut, pressing the heels of his hands above his eye sockets trying to relieve the pain.

“Are you okay?” he sounded genuinely concerned. Thor forced himself to open his eyes to give him a reassuring smile.

“Peachy.” He said, and Loki understandably was not convinced.

“Wait here, I’ll fix something up for you.” He said, getting up.

Even with the headache that makes it feel like his skull was being split in half, Thor didn’t miss the way Loki was limping out of the room and he groaned loudly once again. Unconcerned, since Loki would definitely just assume that it was the hangover.

One day, Thor would die. And whether it was of old age or because he bled to death on a mission gone awry, he knew that as he takes his final breaths, he would have only a single regret; that he doesn’t recall a single moment of the night spent with the gorgeous being who most likely owns the bed he was laying on.

God, Thor would give anything to be able to remember even a single second. Maybe he can ask Tony for some memory-reliving device?

 

* * *

 

 

It had been a run-of-the-mill reconnaissance mission. The Norwegian government had detected… something in their lands and requested American aid. Thor was sent with a team of soldiers he’s never met before and didn’t bother to remember the names of to scout the area.

It looked like a boring mission with nothing to be found and nothing to be gained. They spent hours hiking the forest around the area where the energy spike was detected but came up with nothing.

Until a rookie slipped and fell into an underground cave hidden underneath a bunch of vines. At first, Thor’s priority was to get the idiot out of there, but then he said that he might have found something. So one by one, they got down, tying a few ropes to some trees to ensure a way of getting out and also radioing HQ about their discovery, just in case they get trapped.

Thor was the last one to get down, since he was busy making sure everything was secure, and by the time he did, the rest of his team was already making a ruckus. The inside of the cave wasn’t dark. It was under a large tree whose roots gave way for some sunlight to peek through. His team crowded over the center, and when he walked over to them, they made room for him.

“It won’t move.”

“This is probably it, right?”

“What the hell is that thing?”

“Looks like a hammer.”

It _did_ look like a hammer; a large, weird-looking one with fancy engravings and a leather handle that was at the center of a large crater. Thor took out a small tracker the higher-ups gave him that detected energy signals. Looking at it, there was no doubt that whatever freaky stuff was happening, it was coming from the freaky hammer. Two of their largest men were trying to get it off the ground, and it wasn’t budging.

“Is it stuck?” he asked.

“Seems like it.”

He frowned. “Radio HQ and tell them about the situation. We found what we’re looking for so this shouldn’t be our problem anymore. We’ll secure the area and search the perimeter until they get here.”

There was a chorus of affirmatives before they went to carry out his orders. A few stayed in the cave while others climbed back up.

“Hey look, there’re some weird drawings on the wall.”

“Looks like we accidentally discovered some ancient tomb or something.”

“What’s it gotta do with the mission, though?”

That’s what Thor wanted to know as well, but his attention was being called by the weird artifact they discovered. It was… strange, and he wasn’t sure if it was his imagination but…

It almost seemed like he could hear it humming.

Softly.

Quietly.

Calling out to him.

He stepped forward, figuring that there was no harm in trying. He was just trying to see how stuck this thing was to the ground. Maybe tell the people back in HQ to bring a wrecking ball or something if it’s really that bad.

His hand found the grip of the hammer and pulled.

It was out of the ground with a hum that almost sounded of contentment, but that _couldn’t be_ , right? It was neither heavy nor light. Thor couldn’t explain it but the weight of it felt _just right_ to him.

He frowned in confusion before turning to his men, eyes all wide in shock.

“It’s not that heav-“

There was thunder. Lightning striking from above and the cave was slowly crumbling down. Hadn’t it been sunny outside when they went down there?

That’s what was running through Thor’s mind before everything went black.

 

* * *

 

Thor eventually got up despite his body, especially head, protesting and located his clothes. Once decent, he made his way outside the bedroom and easily navigated through the small, cozy apartment. From what he could tell, Loki lived alone. It looks like he’d just moved in too, judging from the stacks of boxes littered around. He found Loki standing at the kitchen. Earlier, he said he’d make something (presumably) for Thor’s headache so it was probably tea.

As if sensing his presence, he turned around and frowned at him. “I thought I told you to stay in bed?”

“Sorry.” He grinned sheepishly. “I didn’t want to impose or anything.”

Loki huffed before motioning him to sit down by the counter and served him a hot cup of something. Murmuring a thanks, Thor took a sip of it and immediately felt 10,000 times better. No, seriously. Whatever he was drinking, it sure as fuck wasn’t tea. It tasted like sweet nectar and he could literally _feel_ his headache slowly disappearing, as if he was being massaged. It warmed his very core, and he felt every muscle in his body relax.

“Holy _shit_ …”

“Easy now, you’ll burn your tongue.” Loki chuckled, and Thor did slow down, putting the cup down for a moment to heave out a contented sigh.

“What is this?”

“Just an old family recipe.” He shrugged. “So, uh…”

Thor looked up and saw that cute blush again. “Yeah?”

“Not that I’m upset at having guests over but… I don’t really remember inviting you over to my apartment?” he said sheepishly. “Or meeting you, at all, last night. No offense.”

“None taken.” He shrugged. “To be honest, the last thing I remember was walking into a bar.”

A whistle. “You must’ve went wild then, huh?”

“Yep. First day off in a long while, and probably won’t get another one anytime soon. So I figured might as well?”

He snorted. “Well, I guess we’re sort of in the same boat? I went to the bar since I was having a shitty week, and I guess I had one too many drinks.”

“Boss being a dick?”

“You know it.” He grumbled. “I’m an author though, so I’d like to think that I have it better than most.”

Thor noted that he had seen stacks of books in one of the opened boxes in the living room and wondered if they were all Loki’s works.

“How about you?” he asked. “Let me guess. Security?”

He couldn’t help but smirk. “Why do you say that? Because I have a great bod?”

He rolled his eyes. “Cocky, aren’t we? No, I figured that out since you were kicking a lot of asses during the last time we met. And quite well, if I might add.”

He couldn’t help the grin that threatened to split his face in half. “You remembered me?”

“Of course I did.” He huffed. “It’s a bit hard to forget such a traumatic experience, _Thor_.”

“Oh, c’mon it wasn’t that bad, _Loki_.”

His eyes glimmered with what Thor would later identify as his trademark mischief, and his face was split by a gleeful grin. “Did you get that from me last night or should I feel honored?”

“The latter.” He grinned.

“On second thought, maybe I should call the police. Since the two of us crossing paths once again so soon seems too good to be true.” He raised a delicate eyebrow. “I don’t have a stalker in my hands, do I?”

Thor raised an eyebrow back, looking deeply offended despite having had plans to do very stalker-y things the night they met and only ended up not doing so because he got sidetracked.

“I’d prefer to think that it’s fate.” He said, suddenly realizing that he’s finished the entire cup and sheepishly handed it back to Loki, eyes pleading for more. He only rolled his eyes, smiling fondly as he refilled the cup.

“What is that stuff anyway?” he asked but Loki only shrugged, making Thor raise an eyebrow. “You’re not drugging me, are you?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be the stalker here?”

“Since when was _that_ established? Maybe you’re the stalker here and you’re just trying to divert my attention.”

He snorted. “Then I would be a foolish one, taking you back to my home instead of taking the opportunity to find out where yours is.”

“That’s a pretty well thought-out plan for someone who’s not a stalker.”

“You keep talking shit and you won’t get any more of these.” He waved the mug in front of his face.

“No no no no no, I’m sorry. I was just kidding, please give me more. Please.” Thor held his arms out, partly in mock surrender and partly to try and reach for the cup. Loki laughed before handing it back to him. “But seriously though, what’s in these?”

“Haven’t you ever heard that ignorance is bliss?”

“I can’t really afford ignorance, in my line of work.”

“If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it last night while you were asleep.”

“Is that meant to reassure me?”

Loki sighed. “Let me put it this way, did you know they make coffee out of goat feces?”

He paused. “No. I did not. And I had no desire to know about that, thank you very much.”

“Well, there you have it.”

“Are you saying that this is made of goat shit?”

“No. But if it was, would you stop drinking it?”

Thor looked at the mug and the hot, harmless-looking liquid inside it that rid him of his headache better than any hangover cure ever did. “You’re right, I think I don’t want to know.”

Loki smirked in triumph and turned around. It was only then that Thor realized that he was making breakfast.

“So… security?”

“Hm?” Thor asked. “Oh, yeah. I work for a… private company and we just go around taking miscellaneous jobs.”

“Do these ‘miscellaneous jobs’ often include kicking terrorist asses?”

He laughed. “Well, not specifically terrorists, but yes. We do our fair-share of ass-kicking.”

“Quite a dangerous job then.”

“But a fulfilling one.” He smiled.

“Oh? I didn’t take you for a man who’s driven by passion.”

“It’s not really passion as much ideals.”

“And this company you work for,” Loki looked at him quizzically. “it shares your ideals?”

“Yeah.” He smiled. “Why?”

He snorted. “It’s rare to find a company who has any interest outside of making money. You should consider yourself lucky. I mean, outside of the putting yourself in danger thing.”

“I think I can handle myself.”

“That arrogance will be the death of you, you know.”

Thor only grinned, making him snort again before serving him a plate of bacon and eggs then joining him with a mug. Judging from the smell, it was coffee.

“Thanks,” He said. “for serving me breakfast, and whatever the hell was in that mug. And also, for not kicking me out when you woke up and found a stranger in your bedroom.”

“It was tempting, to be honest.” He said. “But then I figured; well, technically you’re _not_ a stranger. We’ve met before.”

“Thank you, but you probably shouldn’t do that again.”

“Noted.” He snickered. “Speaking of which, we should probably figure out what happened last night.”

Thor blinked. “Ah, _fuck_. My car!”

“I don’t live that far from the bar, so we probably walked here.” He said. Thor dug through his pockets and thankfully found his keys; wallet and phone were still with him. He sighed in relief. “I know the guy who owns the place. If you want I can give him a call?”

“Nah, I’ll just check it later.” He said. “We should probably ask him what happened too. I’ve been told I can get pretty wild when I get drunk.”

“I can imagine.” He muttered to himself, and Thor did not miss the way he shifted on his seat.

Thor looked up to meet his eyes, and he could immediately tell Loki knew what he had been thinking.

Loki licked his lips. “So…”

“So…?” Thor smiled.

And then his phone rang. He cursed, fumbling through his pockets before pulling it out.

“Hello?”

“ _Thor! What the hell?!_ ” Steve Rogers’ voice rang through the speaker. “ _We were just about to send a search party out for you!_ ”

“ _God, you’re such a mother hen._ ” Stark said, in the distance. “ _We could’ve just tracked his phone, y’know?_ ”

“ _We had this talk, Tony. It’s an invasion of privacy._ ”

“ _And sending some armed men to barge into other people’s homes to look for the guy is somehow better?!_ ”

“I’m sorry, but what’s going on?”

“ _Check the time, Point Break._ ”

He did so, pulling his phone away from his face to glance at the time.

“Shit!”

“ _Damn, right. Now get your ass over here, pronto._ ”

Thor felt a surge of disappointment in his chest and resisted the urge to sigh. Without meaning to, his eyes turned back to Loki and he froze.

His eyes looked back at him dejectedly and he was _pouting_ , although Thor had a feeling he wasn’t doing so consciously. Not only did it make Thor feel like he was about to kick a _crying_ puppy, but it also made him imagine what those lips felt like.

“ _Thor? You still there?_ ” Steve spoke up and he was jolted out of his thoughts.

“Uh, yeah.” Thor said groaning. “I, uh… I don’t think I’m going to make it today.”

Loki perked up, eyes looking hopeful while Tony spluttered from the other side. “ _What? Why?_”

“I… seemed to have had a bit too many drinks last night.” He groaned again just for show. “My head is killing me.”

“ _And you didn’t share?_ ” Clint piped up, making Thor realize he was on speaker for the entire team. “ _Boo!_ ”

“Sorry, but I needed some ‘me time’ and I suppose I went a little overboard.” He chuckled.

“ _… Okay, but you’re making up for this day off, Thor._ ” Steve said.

“Aye.”

“ _How many drinks did you have?_ ” Natasha asked curiously. “ _We’ve gone drinking tons of times before, but I don’t think you’ve ever said that you had ‘too much’ the next morning._ ”

“ _Not even when he puked all over the carpet._ ” Bruce said.

“ _Yeah._ ”

“ _Okay, you know what? Now I’m kinda worried._ ” Tony said. “ _Where exactly are you, big guy? You didn’t wake up in Vegas or something, did you?_ ”

“No, Stark.” He rolled his eyes.

“ _So you’re home._ ”

He paused. “Yes.”

“ _He hesitated._ ”

“ _Yep._ ” Natasha agreed.

“ _Thor, are you alright?_ ” Bruce’s voice was laced with concern.

“ _Yes_ , I just need some rest.”

“ _Oh, really? Then how about I stop by at your place and drop you off something to eat, huh, buddy? That sounds like a pretty swell idea, don’t you think?”_

“I think you’ll worsen my headache more than anything, so no thanks.”

“ _Wha- the audacity-!_”

“ _Tony-_ “

“ _Thor, you’ll tell us if something comes up, right?_ ” Bruce asked.

“Yes.” He said, starting to get impatient. “I better go.”

“ _What’s the hurry, man?_ ” Clint asked.

“ _Guys, he just said he had a hangov-_ “

“ _You sure nothing’s wrong over there? What’s going on, Thor?_ ” Natasha asked and damn her for being perceptive.

“I gotta go, I’m-“ he paused. “I’m going through a tunnel.”

Loki snorted and almost choked on his coffee, instead he pressed a hand to his mouth, shaking as he tried to hold back his laughter.

“ _I thought you said you were at home?!_ ”

“I am!” he said hurriedly. “I meant my tunnel- at home… My vision! My vision is tunneling.”

“ _Uh-huh_.” Natasha said, amusement in her tone.

“Yes.” Thor nodded. “My vision’s… going black. I got to go. Love you all. Bye.”

“ _Thor! Wait, you son of a-_ “

He hung up. And for extra measure, he removed the battery on his phone too. The second he did, Loki burst out laughing.

“I think I can understand why you seem to like your job so much.” He said after calming down. “It sounds like you work with some interesting people.”

“Oh, you have no idea.”

“So…” he said, eyes twinkling. “Your head still hurts, huh?”

Something in his tone made Thor smile back mischievously. “Yes, it does. But you know, maybe remembering what happened last night could help.”

“Oh?” Loki smirked. “Lucky for you then.”

He stood up and walked around the counter and sat at Thor’s lap, much to his surprise but hey, he wasn’t complaining. Loki leaned forward and whispered, almost conspiratorially. “I have a few ideas on how we can jog your memory.”

Thor grinned.

 

* * *

 

 

When Thor woke up, the only thing he could remember was energy flowing through his veins. Numbing, yet freeing at the same time. Power; oozing from his hand and throughout his body, the same hand that held that mysterious hammer.

Thor bolted upright and immediately regretted it. His entire body was sore and was protesting even the slightest bit of movement. He groaned loudly as his eyes scanned his surroundings. It was a hospital room. He then examined his body, finding no physical injuries. Everything seemed to be fine.

And yet… he felt different. Something changed, and it wasn’t necessarily bad. Just… different.

The door opened and in walked a man in a crisp black suit, followed by two other men in the same attire. And yet, despite the first one being shorter and somewhat plainer, he seemed to radiate authority with the way he smiled confidently at Thor, as if he knew secrets that Thor could never even comprehend. And later, he would find out that he did, in a way.

“Thor Borson.” He said. “My name is Agent Phil Coulson of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.”

“… Hello?” he reached a hand out and Agent Coulson shook it.

“It looks like some things have changed.” He said, giving Thor a once-over. “You found something very interesting three days ago.”

So he’s been out for three days? Yikes. Thor frowned. “Am I getting fired or something?”

“Oh, no. On the contrary.” Agent Coulson took as seat beside his bed, knowing smile still on his face. “I’m here to offer you a job.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be longer, but I wanted to publish something to day and figured, you know what? This is actually pretty long already. It was 4.7k and my threshold for a chapter is only 3k? So yeah, I'll save some for the next chapter. So yeah, expect another one pretty soon. I only need to add a few more scenes there so maybe tomorrow? If I'm in the mood? Definitely by Monday though.
> 
> Thank you for the reviews ya'll!! Really appreciate it :D Tell me what you think about this chapter and its format. I might stick with it, since it's actually easier to write this way. If I get stuck on one part, I can just skip to the next. And you get two birds with one stone. Tell me if it's just distracting or confusing though.
> 
> BTW, the whole innuendo and horny biz? There's gonna be a lot of that :3 But I can't write smut, so sorry.


	3. Something Getting Between Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thor's first meeting with his fellow Avengers (this happens right after Coulson recruits Thor, a few years before Thor meets Loki)  
> \+ A night with the Avengers and with Loki (Over two years after Thor met Loki)
> 
> \+ Bonus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a lot longer than necessary, but in my defense I had to mentally prepare myself for endgame and then after that I had to cope with the trauma QAQ
> 
> But I hope you like this! It's longer than chapter one and two combined. I was going to cut it up so it'll only be my standard 3k, but I couldn't find the right time so what the hell? And the bonus was the one that was supposed to come in during the last chapter so I couldn't edit that out.
> 
> Enjoy this 8k long chapter then! And I hope you can understand why it took so long.

They had taken Thor to an underground facility, which he probably shouldn’t have agreed to but what the hell? Apparently he is now the owner of a magical hammer that only he can lift, so if worse comes to worst, he can always just beat everyone up with it.

The hammer, as they told him, was magical. Apparently, not even their largest machinery could get it to budge, but Thor could carry it with ease. It was strange, holding it felt natural to him in a way he couldn’t explain. And it made him feel… different, stronger.

“You must be Thor Borson?” a man with an eye-patch, wearing a dark suit greeted him in the room where Agent Coulson led him in. It looked like a conference room and was empty save for the three of them and one other blond man who sat on the side, wearing casual clothes. He looked kind of familiar. Thor wondered if he was here for the same reason as he was, although he didn’t see him with a magical hammer.

He had something beside him that was a bit out of Thor’s view though; it kind of looked like a shield.

“Thor Borson.” The man with an eyepatch spoke, gaining his full attention. “Do you know why you’re here?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Because you need someone to carry this around for you?” he said, waving the hammer around to show just how easy it was for him. If he was being honest, he didn’t fully buy the whole ‘you’re the only one who can lift it’ shtick, because it sounded like horseshit.

“Pretty much.” He shrugged. “My name is Nick Fury. I’m the Director of SHIELD. And this here is Steve Rogers.”

Thor blinked before looking at the blond who sat straighter and gave him a smile. He frowned. “Wait… _Steve Rogers_?”

“You might know him as ‘Captain America’.”

Thor’s eyes jumped between Nick Fury and Steve Rogers. “I thought he died in a plane crash _decades_ ago.”

“Yeah, I thought I did too.” Steve nodded, standing up and walked over to Thor to shake his hand.

“It’s an honor to meet you.” Thor nodded. “And, can I just say, you look good for someone who should be… 90?”

Steve snorted. “Yeah, that’s about right. Thanks.”

“Mr. Borson, please take a seat.” Nick Fury said. “We’re here to tell you about the Avengers Initiative.”

 

* * *

 

 

“I’m going to kill Stark.”

Thor laughed, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend and kissing him in the jaw, hoping it would be enough to lighten his mood. It wasn’t and Loki only huffed.

“I’ll keep him in our basement for _days_ so he could suffer until he begs me for the sweet release of death.” He growled.

“We don‘t have a basement, babe.” He hummed swaying their bodies from side to side.

“I’ll keep him in our room then. Torture him every night and leave you to sleep on the couch.”

“Aw, but the couch is uncomfortable.” He pouted. “Can’t you torture him in the living room?”

“No. I just bought that carpet and I will not ruin it with some heathen’s filthy blood.”

Thor laughed. “What did he do this time?”

“He called my work dramatic.”

A pause. “Is that… bad?”

“Of course it is!” he huffed, trying to get himself free from Thor’s hold but he won’t budge.

“Babe, you write historical _drama_. Isn’t it _supposed_ to be dramatic?”

“You weren’t there. He didn’t say that as any sort of compliment. There was _malice_ behind his words, Thor.”

“Uh-huh.” He smiled fondly, peppering kisses on his neck.

“What in the bloody hell does he know? Just because he’s mastered robotic science and computer technology, he thinks he’s mastered art, as well? The _audacity_ -“

“Loki, as much as I love listening to you justify the horrendous murder you plan on committing to one of my friends, we need to be there by six and I want to beat the traffic.”

“I’m drugging his drink tonight and then I’ll stuff him in the trunk.”

“Can you carry him on your own? Because I’ll probably be too drunk to help you out.”

“You’re useless.” He scoffed, making Thor laugh.

“You know, it’s your fault.” He said. “I warned you not to give him your phone number.”

“Oh _sure_. Blame the victim, Thor.” Loki put a hand on Thor’s face, pushing him away and forcing him to let go and walking off. “Oh, how blind I was to not see your true colors. Natasha warned me about you, I should’ve listened. But now… oh, the betrayal! The pain!”

Thor rolled his eyes. “I kind of regret introducing you to my friends.”

“I also regret trying to get to know your friends.” He said. “You’re all heathens.”

“Even me?”

“Especially you.” He said. “If you pass out tonight, I’m not dragging your fat ass all the way back home.”

“I’m not fat.” He pouted. “It’s called muscles, Loki. Not everyone is as petite as a doll like you.”

To prove his point, Thor walked over to Loki who was looking for his wallet and lifted him up in the air, making him squeal.

“Thor, you oaf! Put me down!” he screamed and Thor only laughed. “I swear to the Norns, I will pepper spray you!”

“Please don’t.” he said, putting Loki down while still grinning. “You need to eat more, you’re too light.”

“Not everyone can be large brutes like you.” He huffed, grabbing his keys and finally finding his wallet. “Let’s go. I don’t want to hear that ‘captain’ of yours ramble on about how we’re fifteen seconds late.”

Thor smirked. “Do you promise not to drug anyone tonight?”

“I owe you no such promise.”

“Do you at least promise not to go home without me? Even _if_ I’m blackout drunk?”

A pause and Loki clicked his tongue. “I hope you’re aware how lucky you are that I love you.”

Thor grinned. “Don’t worry, I do.”

 

* * *

 

 

“So this is our magic hammer guy, huh?”

Thor raised an eyebrow. “I’ve been told it’s called ‘Mjolnir’.”

A pause. “That’s… a mouthful. Can’t we just call it… I don’t know, ‘Lucille’ or something?”

“I mean, we can. But it’s technically mine and I say no.” he said. “It’s not that hard to say.”

“Says the Norwegian with the Norwegian hammer.” A woman spoke up, standing beside the first man with the goatee. “Hi, I’m Agent Natasha Romanoff.”

They shook hands. “Thor Borson.”

“This is Tony Stark. He’s annoying but apparently his head is useful.”

“Yeah, because it has my face on it.” He winked. “So, Norwegian, huh?’ Why don’t you have an accent?”

“ _Oh my God Stark, you can’t just ask someone why they don’t have an accent._ ”

“That’s Clint.” Natasha said, gesturing at the man eating cheetos on the couch. “The one beside him is Dr. Bruce Banner.”

Thor nodded at the two men who both waved at him before returning his attention to Tony Stark. “My parents were from Norway. They moved to America before I was born.”

“Ah.” Tony nodded in understanding.

“So… what’s a billionaire doing at a top secret security agency?” Thor asked. “Were you the one who sponsored all this or…?”

“Wow, you think I’m only useful for my money? Bah! All men are the same.”

“I mean, he’s not wrong.”

“Shut up, Nat.” Tony huffed. “I make weapons.”

“Ah.” Thor nodded.

“Dangerous ones.”

“I see.”

“No, seriously. My tech could blow this whole place to kingdom come.”

“I believe you.” He said. “There’s no need for a test run. Really.”

“I don’t mind one.”

“Shut up, Clint.” Natasha scolded.

“So…” Thor drawled out. “We’re supposed to beat up a bunch of bad guys?”

“Pretty much.” Tony grinned. “Isn’t it such a dream come true? I always wanted to be a superhero when I was a kid!”

Natasha rolled his eyes but Thor only grinned. He could already tell this job would be a hell of a lot better than his old one.

“So, anyway.” Tony said. “Magic hammer, huh? What exactly does it do?”

Thor frowned, looking at Mjolnir. “Honestly? I have no idea.”

Tony smirked at that. “Well then, let’s find out!”

 

* * *

 

 

“It’s called a fucking metaphor, you uncultured swine!”

“I know what a _fucking metaphor_ is-“

 “I’m glad Loki’s having fun.” Thor smiled fondly. “You know, I was a bit worried when I introduced you all to him. I really liked Loki, and I wanted you all to like him too.”

“Thor, believe me buddy, we do.” Bruce frowned. “But seriously, he looks like he’s about to stab Tony’s eyes out with that fork.”

“Oh, settle down, Bruce. That’s probably how Loki bonds with people.” Clint said. “Nat was the same.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, it took four bullets to the torso for her to trust me. Fury was upset but honestly? It was worth it.”

“I didn’t trust you, I just got tired of you following me around all the time so I figured I’d just give this whole ‘Avengers’ thing a shot.”

“I wore her down.” Clint nodded proudly. “Just like Tony will wear Loki down with his friendship.”

“Thank you, all of you, for treating him well.” Thor smiled. “It really means a lot to me.”

“Hey,” Natasha placed a hand on his shoulder, smiling. “It’s no problem, big guy.”

“He’s really cool.” Clint said. “Never met anyone who can keep up with Stark when it comes to bantering.”

“Yeah, I know. If a pen is mightier than a sword, then I gotta say, his tongue is a WMD.” Bruce said.

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it.” Thor smirked.

There was a pause, then Clint and Natasha groaned and Thor laughed while Bruce whispered softly. “Please stop.”

They were interrupted when Steve arrived, stepping off the elevator and into the Stark Tower’s party lobby.

“Captain! Strange of you to arrive late to the party.” Thor smirked.

“Yeah, what was the holdup? Couldn’t figure out the elevator?” Clint joked.

“I got held up.” Steve rolled his eyes before turning to Thor with a serious expression. “Fury called for you.”

Thor’s grin instantly fell and from his peripherals, he could see the rest of them tense up.

“Is something wrong?”

“I don’t think so. He just said he has something he wants to talk to you about.”

Thor nodded before turning to Natasha.

“I’ll tell Loki you had to answer a phone call or something.” Natasha said before he even spoke and Thor nodded gratefully before walking to the elevator.

 

* * *

 

“So, I’m just going to be hitting some dummies, right?” Thor asked when they brought him to a very large room, probably the size of a football field. It was empty, the walls lined with strange dark metal. His companions were looking into the room from a window which, from what Thor could tell, was made of bulletproof glass “You know, like the ones in shooting ranges?”

“… Not really.” Tony said, working around on a touch screen monitor from where he stood.

“Tony, are you sure about this?” Bruce asked worriedly. “Shouldn’t we wait for Fury? Or Cap, at least?”

“It’s fine.” He waved it off.

“ _Nat_.” Bruce all but whined, but she only shrugged.

“We’re gonna have to find out, eventually. And it’s not like we’re doing anything right now.”

“We’re supposed to be getting to know each other!”

“Hey! Big guy!” Clint shouted.

“My name is Thor.” He shouted back.

“Yeah, Thor.” He nodded. “What’s your favorite color?”

A pause. “Blue!”

“Nice!” he gave a thumbs up. “Mine’s purple!”

“Good to know!” he said with a hint of sarcasm. Clint turned back to Bruce and Nat and motioned matter-of-factly. Bruce looked exasperated while Nat only shrugged whilst smiling in amusement.

“Mine’s red, if anyone wants to know.” Tony said.

“Mine’s green.” Nat piped up. “What about you, Bruce?”

Bruce opened his mouth, about to tell them off but then slumped, realizing it was hopeless. He sighed in defeat. “Purple.”

“Heeeey! Purple Pals!”

“I think Cap’s favorite color is blue too.” Tony said.

“I guess he has a lot in common with the new guy.” Nat said.

“New guy?” Thor raised an eyebrow before shouting back at them. “How long have you guys known each other?”

“About 24 hours.” Nat said.

“Not even.” Clint snorted.

“Then why am I the ‘new guy’?!”

“Because you arrived last.” Tony answered. “Alright, I’m almost done. Square up, Point Break!”

“Point Bre- ?“ Thor didn’t get to ask what the fuck that was about when panels that lined the walls on the other side of the room opened and from it sprung high tech drones the likes of which Thor has never seen before. They looked like something out of a sci-fi horror movie, complete with beady red eyes that are all trained towards him as they made their way to him with unnerving purpose. From what Thor could tell, the metal it’s made of is thick, definitely not easy to break and from the sounds of their footfalls, they’re not light either so their punches most likely won’t be either.

“Stark.” Thor called out nervously. “I thought I said you didn’t need to give your tech a test run for me.”

“Oh, these aren’t mine. They’re SHIELD’s. My tech is a lot deadlier than these.”

“So they’re, to an extent, deadly. Good to know.” Thor chuckled humorlessly, regretting his choice to come with the mysterious man offering him a mysterious job. Not one of his brightest moments.

“Don’t worry! They’re designed to be used for practice!”

“Aren’t they programmed to go for the kill though?” Clint asked. “So they can really prepare you for the real thing?”

“Yeah, but I reprogrammed it just for the big guy, over here.” Tony said. “They won’t aim to kill, but only to seriously injure you, Point Break.”

“Is that meant to comfort me?!” he shouted taking several steps back, which was apparently the wrong thing to do since the dozen robots coming at him started sprinting. “What the hell am I supposed to do?!”

“Fight them!” Natasha yelled. “You’re a trained military guy like Steve, aren’t you?!”

“They didn’t cover fighting homicidal robots in military training!” he growled, dodging one robot as it lunged towards him and skidding past another. The others were getting close and soon enough, he won’t be able to run from them all.

“You’ve got a magic hammer!” Tony yelled, exasperated. “Use it!”

“I don’t know how!”

“It’s a hammer for God’s sake!” Clint yelled. “Hit them with it.”

Thor really doubted it’s that easy but it was either that or let himself be seriously injured by the scary robots so he planted his feet on the ground, gripped Mjolnir tight, zeroed in on his target- a robot that had lunged towards him who looked to be aiming for his neck- and _swung_.

He felt the weight of the machine upon impact and he had been right; it was _heavy_ and for a split second he was afraid that he made a grave mistake. There was no way he could deal any damage to something that heavy with armor that thick.

Or at least, he thought until he watched with wide eyes as the robot flung to the air and thrown to the other side of the football field-sized room from the force of its impact with Mjolnir.

“OOOOOOOHHHH!” his companions cheered from the safety of their spot and Thor was torn from being hyped up from it or angry with the urge to strangle them for throwing him in there like a bunch of psychos. He might spare Bruce.

“Holy shit! How d’you do that?!” Clint asked.

“I-I don’t know.” Thor said.

“On your left!” Natasha warned.

Thor’s reflexes were quick, so he was able to dodge a blow from another robot before he hit it with the hammer too, earning the same result.

He laughed almost hysterically, adrenaline pumping in his veins from the mind-numbing fear and panic he would never admit to feeling earlier. “You know, I didn’t really believe them at first when they said that this thing was magic, but now? I can tell you it definitely is!”

He _decimated_ the remaining robots, they really weren’t so scary anymore once you realized that a single hit will knock them down. He swung Mjolnir as if he was born to wield it, his military training and martial arts background ensured that he didn’t rely heavily on it, although it dealt the killing and only blow each time. He’s never fought like this before. It was exhilarating. He felt like he was unstoppable, like all his training had led up to this, like…

Like he was finally where he belonged.

“Damn, he’s killing it in there.” Clint whistled. “Literally.”

“He sure is.” Tony smirked before looking back at the screen. “Let’s take it up a notch.”

With a few clicks, more panels opened and dozens more popped up. Thor’s grin only widened, at least until he realized that even more continued to come out and suddenly, he wasn’t so sure.

“… Stark?” he yelled back, panic seeping into his tone.

“Tony, isn’t this a bit overkill at this point?” Nat frowned, looking worried.

“I’ve read his file, there should be a lot more to that hammer than just being able to hit things with it.”

“I don’t think this is the right time to test that.” She said.

“Oh, you think?!” Bruce groaned. “Tony, that’s enough-“

“Cancel the session right now, and turn it off-“ Natasha ordered at the same time as Bruce argued.

“Both of you need to calm down-“

The three argued while Clint opened up a new bag of cheetos and yelled at Thor. “Believe in yourself, man!”

Thor groaned, the regret creeping back in. He took a deep breath and tried to think. There’s no way he could fight all these things. It wouldn’t take long until they overpowered him with their numbers. As they got closer, a surge of panic overcame him and his grip on Mjolnir tightened. Mjolnir…

Mjolnir was vibrating.

Well, not really vibrating but Thor felt the same kind of energy from the first time he held it emanating, like an aura of some sort that’s responding to his emotions.

Fuck it, the reason he accepted the job was because he was just going with his gut and it hasn’t failed him yet, so why stop relying on it now? He closed his eyes, feeling electricity coursing through his veins along with the adrenaline, and yet it didn’t hurt. It didn’t hurt, it just made him…

Thor let out a fierce battle cry and swung _his_ hammer, not at any approaching robot but at the floor. He wasn’t entirely sure why he did, but it proved to be a good move. Electricity, seemingly coming from Mjolnir and being absorbed into his body, was everywhere. It had all just building up inside him along with his emotions and the adrenaline; it burst out of him randomly, powerfully and lethally.

There was a bright, blinding light, a thundering almost deafening roar of thunder and the ground shook so hard that in the back of his head, Thor wondered how the ceiling hadn’t collapsed on him already. He was out of breath and his head was light. It took a moment for him to gather his bearings and look around.

The entire room was scorched, no machine left standing, the ones close to him were barely recognizable. The metal floor he was standing on was heavily dented for up to a 12 feet radius. His eyes were wide with shock, then he turned around to look back at the large window where his companions were. They’re gone.

Or at least, that’s what he thought. After a few seconds, Tony peeked in from below the window and eventually the others followed. Thor guessed that after whatever the hell he did, they all fell to the floor for cover.

“ _Holy shit_.” Tony breathed.

“Oh my God…” Nat said, equally in awe.

“Dude!” Clint yelled, jumping up and applauded. “That was awesome!”

Thor laughed, because he had to agree, it was.

“Yes, it was pretty badass.” a familiar voice spoke up with a tone so foreboding that Thor had to suppress a shiver. He, along with the others, turned to the source and a few floors up, Thor saw Nick Fury and Captain America looking in from a similar window that definitely was not there before. Captain America looked exasperated while Fury looked as stoic as ever. Beside Fury was a young woman with short hair, sporting the same stoic expression. “However, I don’t recall giving you permission to wreck billion-dollar training hall.”

Thor blinked before pointing to the others with his hammer. “Your sponsor said it was okay.”

“I thought I told you I wasn’t a sponsor!”

“No, you just told me you built weapons, that doesn’t mean you’re not also a sponsor.”

“Everyone,” Fury spoke in a commanding tone. “Get your asses to the lab, _now_.”

Thor’s felt his expression morph into the physical manifestation of the term ‘yikes’ and looking at the others, they were going through similar emotions. Well, at least he got to have some fun. Hopefully, this wouldn’t be enough to get him fired, he was starting to like the hammer.

 

* * *

 

“You called for me, sir?” Thor asked, stepping out of the elevator and into the dimly lit floor. It was Fury’s floor and Thor will never understand why the man likes to keep it so dark all the time.

“Yes, I did.” He said from the sofa. “Take a seat.”

Thor raised an eyebrow. “Will this take long?”

“That depends on you.”

A pause and Thor ended up taking a seat.

“Now, I assume you remember the contract you signed when you first joined the Avengers Initiative?” he asked. “Of course, nobody ever reads the damn thing but surely, you understood the gist of it?”

“Of course.” He nodded. “Never say a thing about anything. If anyone asks, I’m a former military man using my skills to provide private security services by working at Avengers Security, a subsidiary of Stark Industries. Prioritize civilian safety during missions… uh… follow the rules in that handbook you gave us. Salaries and all the employee benefits were there. Our allowed vacation days, pension, insurance, terms in case of resignation, what else?”

Thor’s face scrunched up in thought, meanwhile Fury sat patiently, expression as stoic as ever.

“… uh, I’m not allowed to take Mjolnir home, which I still think is stupid. I’m pretty sure there had been a waiver there somewhere where I basically forfeited my life for this.” He hummed. “Did I miss anything?”

“A big one, actually.” Fury sighed. “You know about Barton’s family?”

“Of course, Laura and the kids.” He grinned. “Little Nathaniel should be born soon, I’ll be the godfather this time.”

“Right.” Fury nodded. “They live in a farm at the countryside, Clint comes home every few months. Ever wondered why they stay there?”

He raised an eyebrow. “… because they liked the aesthetic?”

“No.” he deadpanned. “It’s because we have a dangerous line of work, and so we can’t really guarantee your safety, or the safety of those you care about.”

“It was never really a problem with you, since you said that your family is loaded, so they can afford their own security measures on top of the one SHIELD provides. Not to mention the fact they moved back to Norway, far away from you _and_ you said you haven’t kept in touch with them much. So your folks weren’t really a cause for any concern.” Fury stood up, crossing his arms and leveling Thor with a look. “ _Loki_ on the other hand…”

Thor tensed up, resisting the urge to glare at Fury but he only kept talking, making it hard to do so.

“He’s living with you, yeah but that doesn’t really mean you can be with him 24/7. In fact, if you ask me, the fact that he’s living with you puts him more at risk.” He said. “I already have men stationed around your apartment, for his safety and yours. But like I said, there’s no guarantee.”

“What exactly are you trying to tell me, sir?” his voice was hard, filled with suppressed anger that he’s well aware is misplaced. Fury raised his arms defensively.

“All I’m saying is that you need to make a choice.” He said. “You can stay with him and put him at risk or…”

“I can leave him.” He said through gritted teeth.

“I’m not saying you should, I can see that you care about him a lot. And that’s exactly why I’m telling you this. You’ve chosen a tough line of work, one that forces you to make some hard decisions.” Fury’s expression softened the tiniest bit. “Even if you decide to stick with him, all I need is for you to understand that that choice might have consequence in the future, ones that involve seeing the people you care about possibly hurt… or worse, and you should be prepared for that.”

Thor opened his mouth to retort, but the words died in his tongue. It wasn’t like he knew none of this, but everything had been going so well he couldn’t help but push that in the back of his head. They constantly save the world from nazi descendants and superhuman villains for God’s sake, don’t they deserve a little bit of happiness outside of work?

“Do you understand, Borson?” Fury asked. Thor was silent, and after a few moments he gave Fury a nod with a tight-lipped smile. It looked like Fury knew better than to keep pushing and so he dismissed him. Thor wasted no time in getting up and back to the elevator.

 

* * *

 

 

“I told you all to get to know each other, not to haze the new guy.” Fury crossed his arms.

“Can you all please stop calling me ‘the new guy’?” Thor grumbled. He was being hooked up to several medical machines because Fury wanted to check his vitals for some reason.

“We were!” Tony said, completely ignoring him.

“Oh, were you now?”

“Yeah.” Tony nodded. “His name’s Thor, his folks are from Norway, and his favorite color is purple.”

Bruce leaned towards him and whispered. “It’s blue.”

“His favorite color is blue.” Tony snapped his fingers. “Right! The same as Cap!”

“You’re Blue Buddies.” Clint said to Steve. “We should fight sometime. The Blue Buddies vs the Purple Pals.”

“Purple Pals are Clint and Bruce.” Natasha informed them.

“How fascinating.” Fury drawled out, reaching one hand up to massage his temples before addressing Natasha. “You know, I hoped that you’ll be able to keep them all in check while I was gone.”

Natasha shrugged. “Nobody died, right?”

He sighed before turning to Bruce. “How is he?”

“He’s… fine. Weirdly fine.” He said with a frown. “All his vitals look good. Blood pressure, heart rate, biochem; they’re all normal.”

“That’s good, isn’t it?” Thor raised an eyebrow.

“I’ve checked the surveillance footage from training hall and checked the readings. All that electricity seemed like it came out of nowhere, but from what I can tell it looked like Murnel was generating all that.”

“Mjolnir.” Thor said.

“According to this, it was able to generate voltage high enough to be able to kill you ten times over.” Bruce said, motioning at a screen filled with stuff that Thor couldn’t be bothered to understand.

“And yet he’s perfectly fine.” Fury said. The woman Thor had seen earlier hasn’t left Fury’s side and has been writing things down on a clipboard. If Thor didn’t know any better, he’d say she was jotting down the entire conversation.

Tony whistled. “Well, Bruce, good news. It looks like you’re no longer the weirdest guy in the room.”

“I’m not weird.” Thor grumbled. “I just happen to have a large, magic hammer that can knock people out.”

“Please don’t say that ever again.” Tony said.

Fury sighed. “Tell me Stark, do you at least know Banner’s details? Or Romanoff? Barton, maybe?”

“Big green guy with anger management issues, kick-ass, and Katniss Everdeen.”

Fury stared at him, looking like he was close to losing all faith in humanity before turning to Bruce who blinked before shrugging. “I mean, _basically_.”

“If I’m being honest, I don’t really know why Stark is here.” Clint shrugged. “I mean, don’t we already have an entire department dedicated to weapons manufacturing? Even if we did gain the support of Stark Industries, that doesn’t really explain why he has to be _here_ instead of at a board meeting with other high-up guys.”

“ _Wow_.” Tony said, indignantly. “You all really think that the only thing special about me is money, don’t you?”

“If it’s any consolation,” Thor spoke up. “I think what’s special about you is money _and_ the fact that you’re very attractive.”

“ _Thank you_!” he said, throwing his arms up in exasperation.

“Alright, I suppose it was my fault for overestimating your ability to follow orders.” Fury sighed. “Everybody sit down. I will explain each and every one of your known abilities and you better damn well memorize all of them because if you will be going on missions together, it’ll probably help to keep you alive.”

“Hey buddy, can you move your toy?” Tony asked, lightly kicking Mjolnir.

Thor rolled his eyes, getting up as Bruce removed the tubes and wires they connected to him. “Yeah, give me a min-“

He stretched out his hand, eyes on Mjolnir and suddenly, it flew from its place on the floor and right onto Thor’s outstretched palm with a soft hum. Thor’s eyes widened, clearly not expecting that and the others just stared at him in shock.

Fury turned to the woman he was with. “Write that down.”

 

* * *

 

Thor had time to think while he was in the elevator. It was quiet, which only made him feel more restless.

He always knew the risks, but he had never been the kind of guy who would get attached so he saw no problem in it. When he first met Loki, he thought it would just be a onetime thing. Friend-with-benefits at most, but how was he supposed to know that he was so smart and charming on top of those good looks.

He could never give up his job. For the first time in his life, it felt like he was doing things that actually _mean_ something. He wanted to spend the rest of his life fighting to protect people and he wanted to die protecting people. But Loki didn’t sign up for any of that, did he? All he knew was that Thor may sometimes go home a little beaten up, but that’s it. He doesn’t know that dating Thor would also put his life at risk. If he did, would he leave?

Thor doesn’t know, and frankly, he’s too afraid to ask. Because even though he wants to spend the rest of his life fighting as an Avenger, he also wants to spend the rest of his life coming home to Loki’s arms.

The elevator opened and the first thing that greeted him was Loki’s worried face. The rest of the Avengers looked like they were in the midst of deciding what party game to play. Tony was holding up Monopoly while Natasha had a deck of cards on hand. Clint, of course, was waving around a box of Uno cards.

“Did something happen?” Loki asked as he stepped out of the elevator, his face scrunched up in worry. He always did have an easy time reading him.

“It’s nothing, just some work stuff.” Thor forced a grin and he could tell that Loki wasn’t convinced.

He knew that he had to talk to Loki about this. They just celebrated their second anniversary last month. Loki deserves to know what he’s getting himself into, and no matter what choice he makes, Thor will support it. He has to.

They’ll work things out. Right?

He was snapped out of his thoughts when Loki pressed a hand on his cheek, forcing him to look at him. Loki’s eyes, a beautiful green color, seemed to shine even in the dimly lit area where they stood. Thor would never understand how he ever got so lucky as to meet someone so _perfect_. Loki smiled comfortingly at him.

“You know I’m here for you, right? No matter what.” He said. “I love you.”

And for a moment, it seemed like that could be enough. It was like nothing else mattered and they could get through anything, with that alone. Thor smiled, genuinely this time.

“I love you too.” He’ll tell him, someday, maybe soon, but not now. For now, they were here to celebrate a successful mission and a big bonus they received because of it.

“Hey, love birds!” Tony called out. “Get your asses over here so we can decide!”

Thor laughed while Loki rolled his eyes. Thor grabbed his hand and Loki leveled him with a concerned look, but Thor returned it with a reassuring one and he relented. He knew this wasn’t over, but for now, they deserve to have a little fun.

They sat on the sofa, next to each other, as expected. Thor sat next to Steve while Loki sat next to Natasha.

“You think poker would be good, don’t you, Loki?” Natasha asked with a sly smirk and Loki mirrored it. Thor snorted, knowing that if anyone in the room could trick the Russian superspy, it would probably be Loki.

“ _Hey_!” Tony snapped. “He doesn’t get a say in this. Not an avenger, therefore, no voting rights.”

“So stingy.” He drawled out. “Still sore about losing our earlier debate, Stark?”

“I didn’t lose shit.” He said. “And I’m just stating facts here. You’re here as Thor’s plus one.”

“You’re just stingy because you don’t have a plus one.” Clint snorted.

“Neither do you, _dipshit_.”

“That’s because Laura’s back with the kids, though.”

“Yeah, no one else really has anyone to bring as a plus one.” Natasha shrugged. “What about you? How’s it going with that surgeon guy?”

Tony groaned. “No, we are not doing this.”

“He still hasn’t asked him out?” Thor raised an eyebrow, clearly amused.

“Who?” Loki whispered.

“Stark met with a surgeon for a business deal of some sort.” He whispered back. “Apparently the guy was able to keep up with his snark and even embarrassed him a bit in front of his men. It wasn’t that bad, but we think he’s developed a bit of a crush on the guy since then.”

Loki raised an eyebrow. “So Stark is a masochist?”

“I will fucking kick you out of here, Yomaheim.”

“It’s Jotunnheim.” He scoffed.

“How can you remember your own name?” Clint said.

“ _Please_ tell me you didn’t just ask me that.”

“Isn’t that Norwegian?” Natasha asked. “You’re from Norway too?”

“Yes,” he smiled. “I grew up there before leaving a few years ago to be an author.”

“Wait, if you grew up there, then why don’t you have an accent?”

“ _Oh my God, Tony_ -“

“I swear to God, Barton. If you don’t shut your mouth-“

“I guess you too have a lot in common.” Natasha said, ignoring the idiots in the room. “So, did you spend your first few dates talking about Norwegian stuff?”

Loki snorted. “Not really, there’s not much to talk about.”

“Seriously?” she raised an eyebrow. “I beg to differ. Vikings, fjords, _Abba_.”

“You know they’re Swedish, right?”

“Who’s Abba?” Steve whispered to Thor, but apparently Loki heard it because he whipped his head around to look at Steve incredulously.

“ _Seriously_?! Have you been living under a rock for the past seventy years?!” he asked, and Natasha almost choked on her drink while Steve snorted.

“Something like that, I guess?”

Loki raised an eyebrow before looking at Thor who only shrugged while trying to stifle a smirk.

“I heard you guys have some pretty interesting myths there.” Bruce said, after seemingly giving up on stopping Clint and Tony’s bantering.

Loki snorted. “You don’t know the half of it. Valhalla, Valkyries, Yggdrasil, Bifrost, Mjolnir…”

Thor perked up at the mention of his mighty weapon, which didn’t escape Loki’s attention. He raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend before Natasha saved him.

“Thor has always been interested in Norse Mythology, wouldn’t shut up about it from the first day we met.” She rolled her eyes and, well, she wasn’t lying.

“That’s the first time I’ve heard of that.” He said and Thor snorted.

“I’ve been told that my ramblings can get a bit annoying.”

“It can.” Tony piped up. “You’re lucky, Reindeer Games. It’s amazing how long he can go on and on about Mjolnir this and Mjolnir _that_ -“

“Of course, you’d be interested in Mjolnir, you brute.” Loki chuckled, looking at his boyfriend. “I mean, I suppose it is said to be one of the most powerful weapons ever created, capable of leveling mountains with a single swing and whatnot.”

Clint snorted, because they all knew that was a gross overstatement. Mjolnir was powerful but not _that_ powerful.

“Why would you want a hammer when you can have guns, or lasers?” Tony said.

 “It’s the aesthetic, isn’t it?” Loki said. “A powerful hammer for a powerful warrior. It almost has a romantic element to it.”

“I think we don’t need to hear about you romancing warriors to get to their hammers, Lokes.”

Everyone’s face scrunched up in disgust, groaning while Tony cackled. Clint was booing on the side.

“If Mjolnir existed, I bet it would destroy the Earth trying to get away from you, you disgusting heathen.” Loki said.

“Get away from him?” Steve asked curiously. “What do you mean? Is it… is it sentient?”

“Heavens, no. It’s just enchanted.”

Loki took a drink, so he missed the way the team looked at each other with a confused frown.

“I’ve never heard about that.” Thor said. SHIELD had done their damnedest to try and learn more about Mjolnir and consulted numerous experts on Norse Mythology, and yet no one could figure out why Thor is the only one who can lift it.

“Well, I’m not sure how true it is. But a certain story circulated around…” Loki thought for a moment. “I don’t know, a few centuries ago? They say that the king of the Frost Giants, Laufey, tried to kill the Allfather, Baldur. And he succeeded in dealing a mortal wound, but not before Baldur could do the same. They say that in Baldur’s final moments, he took the mightiest weapon the gods have ever created, the Mjolnir, and used his remaining strength to ensure that it never falls into the wrong hands.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Tony snorted.

“Well, in the past, anyone could wield it. There are even stories of mortal men being able to use Mjolnir.” He said. “But according to this story, he used all of his remaining life force to place an enchantment on it. It goes something like…”

Loki thought for a moment, but Thor could tell it was only for dramatic effect.

“Whosoever wields this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the title; ‘God of Thunder’.”

There was a pause throughout, no one really knowing how to proceed. Information about Mjolnir had always been high on Fury’s demand, and now they might actually have their first lead in years on what was up with it.

“What do you mean ‘worthy’?” Tony asked.

“Exactly what it means.” Loki shrugged. “Essentially, it means that you don’t intend on using it with vile intentions but there are other factors that go along with it. Having a heart of gold, iron will, the strength of a mighty warrior, possibly above average intellect, unwavering courage…”

As Loki listed on about the good qualities one must possess to wield Mjolnir, Thor was, unbeknownst to him, grinning from ear to ear, looking very smug as he looked over at his teammates who tried to hide their annoyance. Except for Steve and Bruce, who both snorted but were relatively amused.

“Of course, there’s no way of knowing for sure what the criteria is to be considered ‘worthy’. It’s all just speculation.” Loki shrugged. “But this is considered the most powerful weapon in Norse Mythology, so whoever is ‘worthy’ enough to wield it, I think it’s safe to say, is truly a _man among men_.”

“ _Okay_ , you know what?” Tony said. “Screw that, a hammer’s lame, anyway.”

“Yeah! Isn’t it stupid to just walk around carrying a hammer to a fight?” Clint said. “Oooh, how scary! Like, how about I just shoot you with a gun? Let’s see how useful a hammer will be with that.”

“Right?! Up top!” Tony high fived Clint. Loki frowned, very confused while they continued to go on about how impractical a hammer would be until Thor wrapped around his waist and had him lean on him.

“Don’t worry about them.” Thor whispered to his ear, amusement clear in his tone as Bruce and Natasha joined in. “They’re just annoyed since they know they wouldn’t be worthy enough to lift it.”

Loki turned to him, raising an eyebrow as he observed Thor’s smug expression. “And you think you would? What makes you so sure?”

He grinned. “Just a hunch.”

“Hey! No PDA in my couch!”

Thor looked offended and only hugged Loki even tighter. “Why not?”

“Because cooties!” he said.

Loki rolled his eyes and turned to Natasha, letting his clingy boyfriend argue with the idiot.

“You seem to know a lot about Norse Mythology.” She commented. “Is it for your books?”

“No.” he snorted. “My sister loves those stories, she used to tell me all the time.”

“You have a sister?”

“Yes, she stayed in Norway, living as a complete social recluse.”

“You two close?”

“I suppose.” He shrugged. “We’d probably be closer if she’d get a phone. She doesn’t like electronics and still insists on writing letters to keep in touch.”

“Seriously?” she snorted.

“Yep.” He grumbled. “She has her fair share of quirks.”

“Thor’s never mentioned you having a sister.”

“Well, they’ve never met, and it’s not like I talk about her much. I’d introduce them through video chat but…” he sighed.

“You must miss her.”

“I suppose.” He shrugged. “But then again, we both appreciate our independence. Honestly, I would visit her at Norway with Thor if I didn’t think she’ll get sick of the company by our second day there. It’s just not worth it.”

Natasha snorted.

Their little get-together continued on, with more bantering and drinking. At one point, Clint got his way, and they played Uno. Steve won.

In the end, Loki was the one who ended up passed out in the couch from drinking too much. Tony lying on his legs with Loki’s foot on top of his head from the earlier attempt to get the genius off of him. Clint was on the floor, clutching his Uno cards and Bruce had dozed off on the floor, back leaning on the sofa with Loki and Tony. Natasha lay across the table and they decided not to risk trying to pry out the bottle she still had clasped on one hand.

Steve and Thor ended up cleaning up for the others.

“What a night.” Thor smirked, collecting the bottles.

“Surprised you didn’t drink that much, actually.”

He shrugged. “I wasn’t in the mood.”

“Is it because of what Fury wanted to talk with you about earlier?”

Thor paused, looking at Steve who leveled a look at him. Then he continued cleaning up, as if not hearing him.

“… You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” Steve tried again, and this time Thor chuckled.

“I know…” he nodded, looking at him and giving him a grateful smile. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it.” He smiled and moved to get the dishes to the sink. Thor followed, carrying a bag of their trash. “So… God of Thunder, huh?”

Thor laughed softly, trying to keep his voice down as to not disturb their friends. “It has a certain ring to it, doesn’t it?”

He snorted. “I’d tell you not to let it get to your head but I think it’s too late for that.”

They laughed, and Thor threw one more glance at Loki, lying among his friends and figured, he could have this. At least for a little longer.

 

* * *

 

 

Bruce was miserable. Honestly, he thought he was being a good friend at first. But right now, he realized that it wasn’t worth it.

Tomorrow was Thor and Loki’s second anniversary, but Loki had been so busy and stressed trying to keep up with deadlines he completely forgot about it. Not that Thor minded, quite contrary, he was actually really worried about his boyfriend. So he came up with the plan of surprising him on their anniversary. Naturally, the entire team jumped on the opportunity to help. They were now all in Thor and Loki’s apartment to get ready for the party tomorrow afternoon. They tasked Bruce with distracting Loki.

The plan was to get Loki drunk at the Stark tower until he passes out, then he’ll be nursing a hangover the next morning so he should be up and about by 3pm, when Bruce should bring him to the surprise. Easy enough, Bruce has admittedly found Loki a bit scary, but he was always so calm and composed So he figured that, given the chance, they could get along quite well.

He was partially right. The night started off great; a bit of small talk, getting to know each other, and sure, Loki had his fair share of quirks, but you get used to those when you’re an Avenger. But then, oh then, Loki started to get drunk.

Apparently, Loki gets very horny when he’s drunk, which must be great for Thor and their very active sex life, as he always liked to remind them of. But it was not so great for Bruce, who was stuck with Loki for another three hours at least- he wasn’t really sure how much alcohol it took to knock Loki out.

Loki was absolutely loyal to Thor, so he didn’t hit on Bruce, thankfully. But he was starting to wonder if he would’ve preferred that over their current situation, which is telling Bruce of how he and Thor met. Now, Bruce had always been curious about this and sure, it was nice to finally find out, but he’d be lying if he said that he wouldn’t have preferred going the rest of his life not knowing than to listen to a drunk and horny Loki explain in full detail.

“And I didn’t remember a damn thing- _not a damn thing_ , Banner!” Loki cried out. “Can you fucking imagine?! Waking up on top of 200 pounds of premium, sun-kissed beefcake- and we were both cuddled together, naked. I could feel him against my thigh and it was as big as you’d imagine him to be.”

“Yeah.” he wasn’t ashamed to admit that his voice cracked.

“And then I realized that _I_ was hard. And God, Bruce…”

‘ _Please don’t say my name after a sentence like that_.’ He thought but didn’t have the courage to voice it out. Not for the first time that night, he made a mental note to tell Thor that he owed him.

“And then I made him breakfast because what the fuck was I supposed to do?! I couldn’t let him leave, not when I didn’t have a single memory of our night. I could barely _walk_ , Bruce.”

He was tempted to take the bottle of wine from Loki’s hands, but he had to stick with the plan. _Stick with the plan, Bruce._ He told himself. _It will all be worth it when you see how happy Loki will be tomorrow._

“… And I don’t know how I managed to pull it off, but I _did_. I seduced that dumbass and got him to fuck me again. And you know what? Best decision of my life” he threw his hands up. “I don’t give a shit about how desperate I looked, I didn’t _care_. I was getting that dick, Bruce!”

‘ _Please stop saying my name ; it makes it so much weirder._’ Bruce moaned internally. He made a lot of jokes in the past, but this time he means it with all his heart when he thinks of how great it would be if someone broke in and shot him right then and there.

Suffice to say, the party was a success and Loki never remembered over sharing his sex life with his boyfriend’s coworker. This left Thor confused as to why Bruce wouldn’t look at him in the eye for the next two months.

Tony died laughing when he found out while Natasha just gave him a sympathetic pat on the back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rereading this, I think I just enjoyed writing the dialogue. So I hope you also enjoyed reading them QAQ
> 
> BTW, in case you're curious:  
> 1\. The woman with Fury was Maria Hill. She was writing down all of Thor's vitals and any information they have on Thor because he's the only one they don't understand.  
> 2\. Loki's full name is Loki Jotunnheim  
> 3\. No, Loki does not know Thor works as a superhero. He thinks his boyfriend is a glorified security guard.  
> 4\. Ironstrange all the way <3  
> 5\. Yes, I changed several things about Norse Mythology. Don't question it too much because I might not have that much answers. The gist of it is that Thor and Loki don't exist in this version of Norse Mythology. Maybe Odin and Frigga don't either? Idk, I haven't decided yet. Also, yes. Mjolnir's enchantment was changed.


	4. There's Something I Need To Say

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enter Hydra. Those good-for-nothing bastards.
> 
> But maybe they can be the catalyst to something good?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YO I'M SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG.  
> It was my last year in university and mama's gotta graduate, y'know? Actually, I have one last BIG exam coming up and I really should be studying but I BADLY needed a break. And I actually started this chapter a while ago. When I continued it today, It was a third of its length now. Needless to say, I got carried away. But hey! Good for you, right? :D
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

“Say that again.” Steve said, with more composure than anyone else would’ve had given the situation.

Tony crossed his arms and looked him dead in the eye. “I’m in love with a wizard.”

A pause and Steve sighed, rubbing his hand across his face as the rest of the team watched amusedly.

“Look, I know how this sounds, okay?!”

“You mean like, uh…” Thor piped up, trying to salvage the situation. “… a _math_ wizard? Like, he’s good at the mental math and calculus and stuff?”

“ _No_ , Thor. I mean a wizard, like he pulls rabbits out of hats and stuff like that.” He grumbled.

“ _Oh_ , so he, like, works as an entertainer?” Natasha said, her face lighting up in understanding and possibly relief that one of her colleagues wasn’t crazy. “He’s a magician for kids’ parties?”

“ _No_.” Tony said, having the audacity to sound exasperated. “He’s the surgeon. He works as a surgeon by day but he has magic powers.”

A pause.

“Tony, is this your way of telling us that Dr. Strange performed ‘a miracle’ and magically made you fall in love with him because you’re too proud to say it’s because of his personality?” Bruce asked.

“Oh! I get it!” Clint grinned, wiggling his eyebrows. “You’re saying you got hit by the ol’ _love potion_.”

“NO.” Tony groaned. “Look, I ran into him at a charity ball last night and we just so happened to end up needing to use the bathroom at the same time-“

“What a coincidence.” Natasha whistled.

“ _Right_.” Tony grumbled. “But then, as I was following him to the restroom-“

Thor coughed, earning a nudge to the side from Bruce.

“- suddenly, he took a wrong turn. So I figured _hey_ , I’m a good person. I should help that dumbass _not_ get lost.” He said. “So I followed him and I was about to call out his name when he took a turn and I lost sight of him for like, two seconds. And then there was this bright light and something that sounded like sparks. It disappeared just as quickly as it arrived. And then, when I turned at the same corner, he wasn’t there!”

The others nodded along but Clint was already playing games on his phone at this point.

“There was just a small junction on the wall where a painting was hanged, but nothing else. He disappeared!”

“Uh-huh.” Steve nodded patiently. “This happened at a party last night?”

“Yes!”

“At what time would you say he disappeared?”

“Uh… I don’t know. It was some time after midnight, I guess?”

“Mhmm.” Steve nodded. “Tony?”

“Yeah?”

“At the time when Dr. Strange ‘disappeared’, you wouldn’t happen to have been…” Steve shrugged innocently. “… _drunk_?”

“No!” Tony groaned.

Steve raised an eyebrow at him while Tony rubbed his temples trying to calm down.

He sighed. “Alright, I might have been tipsy-“

“ _Tony_.” Steve said, tone firm. “Do you have a hangover right now?”

Tony looked at him but waited a beat too long to reply. “No.”

“Nat?”

“On it.” She got up, grabbed Tony’s arm and dragged him to the elevator.

“You guys don’t understand!” Tony said, struggling to get free but was no match for the sober Russian spy. “I’ll prove it to you! He’s a wizard! You’ll see!”

“Tell you what, I’ll bet five hundred that you can’t prove it before you two become a thing.” Thor smirked.

“Okay, that’s not fair.” He scoffed. “I was going to try to become his boyfriend so I could gather evidence to prove-“

“ _Tony_.” Steve sighed, shaking his head and his voice thick with exasperation. “Just _ask him out_.”

“If he says no, I’ll buy you a beer.” Clint said.

“He probably won’t though.” Thor said.

“Yeah, I’ve seen the way he looks at you.” Nat nodded. “He’ll jump on the opportunity to jump you.”

“That’s not the p-“ Tony sighed, rubbing a hand across his face before leveling Nat with a look. “… You think so?”

None of them could help but smile. Nat put a hand on his shoulder and met his gaze. “Take an aspirin and go to bed. Once you get up, take a shower then call him. I promise you won’t regret it, okay?”

Tony stared back at her, as if looking for something in her eyes and he seemed to have found it because he took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay.”

Nat grinned. “Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Good.” She patted him in the back. “Let’s get you to bed.”

Tony nodded, letting Natasha drag him to the elevator. But before they entered, who looked back and yelled at his other coworkers. “Guy’s still a wizard!”

They groaned, Steve yelled at him. “Go to bed, Tony!”

“You’ll see!”

Thankfully for Steve’s sanity, the elevator doors opened and Nat dragged Tony in. He continued to yell insistence at them until the doors shut, cutting him off.

“I didn’t really read our TOE, but do you think lovesickness is a valid reason to go on paid leave?” Clint asked.

“If it is, then I’m afraid you won’t be seeing me for a while.” Thor grinned.

“You’ve been together for over two years!” Bruce said in exasperation.

“And I’m still floored by it.” Thor said. Let it be known that it’s very creepy watching a large, muscular man swoon like a schoolgirl meeting her celebrity crush.

“Can we please go back to talking about Tony’s love life behind his back?” Clint asked.

“Yeah, we should also stop doing that.” Steve said.

“Yes, we should.” Thor nodded. “So instead, let’s talk about my love life!”

Steve looked at him for a solid minute before turning back to Clint. “You know, Strange sounds like a nice guy but I never really got to know him personally, you know what I mean?”

Clint smirked as Thor pouted. “He’s an arrogant ass, but his heart’s in the right place. He’s a perfect fit for Stark.”

“Definitely not a _wizard_ though.” Bruce sighed.

“Yeah, totally not.”

“Of course not.” Thor snorted.

“Okay, it kinda sounds ridiculous if it’s being denied by the God of Thunder with the magic hammer.” Clint snorted.

Thor only grinned at the nickname while Steve sighed.

“Look, I figured. Tony just needs to get some rest and get his shit together. Then we can put this all behind us.”

 

* * *

 

 

They were not, in fact, able to put it behind them, because Strange, the son of a bitch, turned out to be an actual wizard.

“I fucking knew it!” Tony screamed, pointing an accusatory finger at Strange who just rolled his eyes.

They had been on a mission. Fury got a lead that Hydra was experimenting with ancient artifacts not unlike Mjolnir and so they were sent to Kathmandu, Nepal where Fury had reason to believe they were headed to steal an artifact. What it was, they had no clue. They ended up in a temple called the Kamar-Taj where Tony’s tech picked up a suspiciously large energy signal.

Before they even got to the temple, they were ambushed by Hydra.  They somehow gotten hold of some vibranium so they were a lot trickier to deal with, but they managed with a little help. Stephen fucking Strange emerged from a portal made of fireworks and literally casted _spells_. Needless to say, Tony was very smug about it.

“See?! I told you guys!” he screamed at the team who couldn’t really say anything, standing before the man who they all knew their coworker had a massive crush on. “He even has a big cape and everything!”

“Well I’ll be damned.” Clint muttered, Stephen only looked at them skeptically.

“Would any of you like to tell me what exactly a private security company based on America is doing all the way in Nepal?” he raised an eyebrow at them. “Also, if any of you could tell me how Dr. Banner just shrunk from a ten foot tall green giant and also why Mr. Borson over there is carrying the famed weapon Mjolnir that would be great.”

“Dr. Strange, was it?” Steve asked. “We’re here on official international business. I’d like to speak with you concerning the men who’ve attacked us, as we believe they may be targeting something in your possession and whatever it is, we don’t want them to have it.”

“Neither do I.”

“Then that means we’re on the same team.” He grinned. “If you can spare us some of your time, the director usually does debriefs but I hope considering time is of the essence in our situation you wouldn’t mind me doing it.”

“What?” he frowned. “Debrief? On what?”

“On the Avengers Initiative, Doc.” He grinned.

 

* * *

 

 

“So I think you all owe me an apology.” Tony crossed his arms, addressing his teammates while Steve talks to Strange.

“I don’t think we do.” Clint shrugged, eating another bag of Cheetos.

“Wha- Are you serious?! Do you even see any of this?!” He gestured all around the room that Strange brought them in. It was inside the temple and filled with ancient artifacts. “He’s a wizard!”

“That he is.” Nat nodded.

“Just like I said! I was right!”

“You were.” Bruce nodded, smiling encouragingly like a parent being shown a terrible crayon drawing by their child. “Good for you, Tony.”

Only Bruce could say those words and not at all sound sarcastic but it still frustrated Tony to no end. “I knew he was a wizard and you didn’t believe me!”

“Oh, right.” Thor nodded, humming in thought before shrugging. “Our bad.”

Tony leveled him with a look. “That’s the best I’m gonna get, isn’t it.”

“Yep.” Nat nodded, taking a handful of cheetos from Clint.

“Can I at least get it from all of you?”

“My bad.” Bruce said.

“Not a chance.” Nat said.

“You realize this doesn’t mean we’re gonna believe you the next time you tell us you saw a wizard, right?” Clint said.

“You should!” he huffed. “And what if it wasn’t a cute, friendly wizard next time-“

“One of those adjectives was not necessary for this argument.” Thor said.

“-what if it was an alien trying to take over the world?! You would’ve risked the lives of millions because you guys are too busy keeping your heads up your asses.”

“Tony, you spend all your time either locked up in your basement with your borderline sentient robots or pretending to be a responsible, functional human being at parties where you’re surrounded by braindead paparazzi.” Nat said. “If aliens were trying to take over the world, I highly doubt you’d be the first to know.”

“You were the last of us to find out that a 6.2 earthquake hit Malibu.” Thor commented.

“So? I don’t watch the news that often and neither do most of you.” He said indignantly.

“Tony,” Nat massaged her temples. “You were the only one of us who _lived_ in Malibu when the earthquake hit.”

“Yeah, I’m still mad at you about that.” Bruce muttered.

“What? Why?!”

“You weren’t picking up the phone!” Nat exclaimed. “We all thought you were dead!”

“Hey! In my defense, if a goddamn earthquake didn’t catch my attention, what makes you think a small glorified box of scraps vibrating five feet away from me would?”

“Fair.” Thor shrugged.

“Don’t take his side!” Nat snapped.

“I’m not, I just think we should just acknowledge that he made a fair point.” He shrugged.

“Well that’s just _great_ , Thor.” Nat threw her arms up in frustration. “When Tony starts calling us and claiming aliens are about to take over, I’ll be sure to redirect him to you.”

“Hey, that’s not what I was getting at-“

“I just want a damn apology.” Tony groaned. “And also my money. Thor, you owe my five hundred bucks.”

He blinked. “What?”

“You heard me. Don’t think I forgot your little bargain, blondie.”

There was a pause before Bruce’s eyes widened in realization. “Oh, right!”

“Shit.” He grumbled, pulling out his wallet which made Tony grin.

“You’re a billionaire.” Natasha pointed out. “A few hundred bucks is nothing to you.”

“A few hundred _grand_ is nothing to you.” Clint added.

“It’s about the principle of the thing.” Tony said, snatching the money from Thor’s hand. “I might night want it, but Thor obviously does. And therefore, there’s value in taking it.”

A pause.

“Wow.” Clint said. “You went full super villain there for a second.”

“Well maybe, if you guys would stop antagonizing me-“

“It’s because he hasn’t had sex in a while.” Thor said. “Trust me; Loki turns the same when I’m away on a mission too long.”

“Can you like,” Natasha ran a hand through her hair in frustration. “Not talk about your boyfriend for _one day_?”

“No.” he smirked. “But I will leave it at that. Point is, Stark just needs a good fuck.”

“I was gone for- what? Half an hour? And Thor’s already turned on me. Turned on this _team_.” Steve spoke up, walking up to the group. Strange could be seen discussing something with one of the monks of the temple. “Tony was doing so well, and now you’re encouraging him to go back to his gross, unhealthy ways.”

“Oh, and pray tell, how exactly was my lifestyle ‘gross’ and ‘unhealthy’?” he crossed his arms. “Was it because I didn’t go to the gym twelve hours a day or eat like a fucking rabbit?”

“Ninety percent of your diet consisted of hamburgers and soda.”

“You stayed at your workshop for days on end, with neither natural sunlight nor a shower.”

“Your only human interactions were either with people from work or the nameless ‘hotties’ you slept with that you never spoke to again.”

That was Nat, Clint, and Steve respectively. Thor and Bruce had the decency not to add anything but they both clearly agreed with the rest of their teammates.

“Okay, now you guys are just ganging up on me.” He crossed his arms. “This is the type of bullying that makes people go dark side.”

“I was telling the group that the reason why Stark is acting cranky lately is because he hasn’t gotten laid in a while.” Thor explained.

“Oh. Okay, yeah, that’s fair.”

“What the fuck, Rogers?”

“I mean, he’s sorta right.” He shrugged. “I’m done with Strange. Why don’t you go talk to him?”

Tony scoffed. “And why would I do that?”

Steve didn’t answer, just giving him a knowing look. Tony huffed and looked at the rest of their teammates, who had similar expressions except for the encouraging and sly smiles.

He glared at them before sighing and walking off without saying a word, which they expected. The guy was way too prideful for his own good sometimes.

“Just be yourself!” Thor whispered out.

“You’ll do great.” Bruce added.

“Go get ‘em tiger.” Clint snickered.

Tony ignored them and just kept on walking toward Strange.

“So? What did he say?” Natasha asked.

“They don’t know much about the group that attacked them. Most of them got away and the few that they did manage to catch for questioning were apparently equipped with cyanide pills.” He shook his head. “Dead before they were even brought back here.”

“… Ouch.” Thor muttered.

“Yeah, no kidding.”

“We know that they were definitely Hydra though.” Nat frowned. “The question is, how did Hydra find out about this place?”

“I mean, SHIELD has Thor in its ranks.” Clint shrugged. “It’s safe to assume Hydra found out magic was a thing and made an educated guess on where a really strong stick might be and went for it.”

“I doubt they’d do something high risk based on a hunch.” Steve shook his head. “No, this was planned. They only had one goal when they raided this temple and they got it.” He showed them a picture of an ancient-looking staff with intricate designs. “It’s called the Dark Scepter. While a bunch of them was making a ruckus outside, one managed to sneak in and grab it. They didn’t steal anything else.”

“It looks like something you’d hang on a wall if you’re a douchebag trying to subtly brag about your wealth, but considering this is a temple with actual sorcerers, I’m guessing there’s more to it than interior decoration.” Clint said.

“How dangerous is it?” Nat asked.

“That’s the thing.” Steve frowned. “Not much.”

“What?”

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s really powerful. It can completely decimate someone, turning them to ash. But after that it’ll be inactive for at least 24 hours.”

“Not really the type you’ll use to take over the world.” Clint said.

“No, it was mainly used as some kind of glorified sniper.” Steve said. “It’s something you can use to take down someone real strong real fast. Like the hulk. But if you wanna take on the Avengers then it isn’t really anyone’s weapon of choice.”

“So they have a target.” Nat nodded, also frowning. “Which means we have more than one problem here.”

“First is the creepy cult, second is the big baddie who the creepy cult wants to kill.” Clint said.

“Hopefully, one of those two is on our side.” Nat said.

“The invaders only wanted this staff, but their attacks were aimed to kill. If the people here weren’t practicing magic, a lotta people could’ve died.” Steve said. “So I won’t hold out too much hope that they’re doing any of this for the greater good.”

“But if they knew about the staff, then it’s possible that they also knew that the people here were magic, right?” Bruce piped up. “Maybe they just wanted to make sure that they stayed down, but in hindsight, they probably knew they couldn’t make any lasting damage.”

Steve paused. “It’s a possibility.”

“Better safe than sorry, though.” Nat said.

“So what now?” Thor asked.

“We’re gonna work together with them. Apparently, Strange pretty much runs this place. He’s not interested in joining SHIELD but he does acknowledge the benefits of working together with us.”

“You think Fury will be able to get through to him?” Nat asked.

“Can’t say.” He shrugged. “I do think it’s a matter of time before he’s in the team. If Fury can’t convince him, then I’m sure Tony can talk him into it.”

“That’s true.” Thor mused. “Love can make you do the craziest things-“

“I’mma stop you right there, big guy.” Clint gave him a rough pat in the shoulder and Nat threw him a grateful look. “In any case, he’s in SHIELD’s radar now. You can bet that Fury’s not gonna leave him alone and I doubt the Love Doctor is more stubborn than Director Motherfucker.”

Steve nodded. “For now, I’ll report everything to Fury and have Tony cooperate with Strange on the investigation. The rest of you are on standby.”

“Probably not for long.” Clint muttered.

“C’mon, once Tony’s done buttering up his new boytoy, we’re gonna jet.”

“Speaking of.” Bruce turned their attention to Tony, who was walking back towards them.

Nat grinned. “How’d it go?”

Tony didn’t answer, instead turning to Thor with a blank expression. “You want your money back?”

He raised an eyebrow but nodded.

“You can have it. On one condition.” He said. “I want you to take Mjolnir, alright?”

Thor looked down at his weapon and back to his friend curiously, raising it up.

“And I want you to swing it. At my head.” Tony said, in complete deadpan. “Really hard.”

“… What?”

“Kill me.”

“Tony- what the fuck are you- Tony? Tony?!”

 

* * *

 

 

The ride back home in the quinjet was a quiet one but the whole team threw looks at each other the whole way. Tony had his head buried in his arms which were rested on a table. No one can tell if he was asleep or just sulking. He wouldn’t say anything about what happened and the team was starting to get worried.

“I mean, how bad could it have been?” Thor whispered.

“Looking at him right now? I’m guessing, pretty bad.” Clint said.

“Bruce, go talk to him.” Nat nudged him with her elbow.

“What? Why me?!” he hissed.

“You’re the one closest to him!”

“But I’m terrible at giving relationship advice!” he said. “Why don’t we have Thor go?”

“I don’t really have that much experience with heartbreaks.” Thor said, earning him a glare from Nat and an eyeroll from Clint. “Also, I don’t think he’ll appreciate it if I walk up to him right now and talked about my wonderful relationship with Loki.”

“Fair.” Clint shrugged.

“Guys, I think we should just leave him alone for now.” Steve said. “Give him some space. He’ll tell us when he’s ready.”

“We should at least make sure he’s alright though.” Nat frowned.

Steve sighed then walked up to their teammate, ignoring the whispered encouragements the rest of the team threw at him which he was 88% sure Tony could hear. He pulled out a chair for himself and sat next to Tony in silence, waiting to be acknowledged.

Nothing. So he spoke up. “You doing okay, Tony-”

“I don’t wanna talk about it.” He deadpanned before Steve even finished his sentence.

“That’s fine.” He said hurriedly. “That’s fine. I just… wanna make sure you’re doing alright.”

“I’m the worst, Steve.”

“Hey, c’mon, Stark.” He said. “We all have our moments.”

“I wanna die.”

“Jesus, he sounds like a highschooler.” Steve heard Clint mutter followed by a pained grunt which he can only assume is Nat elbowing him.

“Stark…” Steve sighed.

“My entire existence was a mistake.” He groaned. “Just throw me out of the quinjet right now. Like trash. Because I am trash.”

“… How about we just order you some pizza and you can spend the rest of the day binge-watching Brooklyn Nine-Nine? How’s that sound?”

Tony pause. Slowly, he lifted his head up to look at Steve, expression unreadable.

“I would like that.” His voice cracked.

“I thought you would.” He grinned. Behind him, the others were sighing in relief.

And that was the exact moment when shit hit the fan.

The quinjet shook violently, knocking everyone off balance and alarms blared.

“What the fuck was that?!” Clint yelled.

“Friday?!” Tony yelled, summoning his suit.

“ _The stabilizers’ been hit. Initiating emergency landing protocol._ ”

“Shit! Where did it come from?!”

“ _I’ve detected two hostile aircrafts approximately 300 meters from the rear._ ” A holographic screen appeared on the table, showing the camera on the quinjet’s rear, the layout of the quinjet with some parts in red, and also its radar showing their position in the middle with two red dots below. “ _They seem to be preparing to launch another attack._ ”

“Everyone get to the escape pods!” Tony yelled.

“What?!” Nat and Steve yelled.

“This plane is going down one way or another and it’s in no condition for an airspace battle.” He said, fully equipping in his suit. “Thor and I are the only ones who can fly so we’ll take them down.”

“Got it.” Thor nodded, summoning Mjolnir to his hand.

Steve hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Be careful.”

“Don’t worry, Cap. We’ll be fine.” Tony waved off his concerns. “Just make sure to call Fury once you get to the escape pod. He’s gonna be so pissed once he finds out that his jet got wrecked.”

Steve snorted, then the rest of them were off running to the escape pods.

“You ready, Point Break?”

Thor didn’t answer, only grinned savagely and that was the only answer Tony needed. Underneath his helmet, he was also grinning.

This wasn’t the first time that they went face to face with aircrafts. Even Steve could take one down as long as there was someone to make sure he doesn’t fall to his death. Most aircrafts couldn’t handle the power of Thor’s hammer or Tony’s tech.

They should’ve been able to take down these two, no problem. They should’ve made quick work of them, spent five minutes max on it, then went to regroup. But the planes were Hydra, which they expected. What they didn’t expect was that the bastards after them also had the scepter which Steve mentioned earlier.

All it took was a lucky shot. The guy who had the scepter had the perfect angle, and he managed to hit both Thor and Tony.

Thor was lucky. He wasn’t sure if it was some type of enhanced sense granted to him when he became worthy of Mjolnir or if it was just quick reflexes he honed during his time in the military, but he managed to dodge the attack without taking any lethal damage. Lethal being the key word there. His arm was hit, luckily it wasn’t his dominant one. But it was nasty. The scepter must’ve definitely used some dark magic because the place he got hit was scorched black. It wasn’t the same way as being burned to ash, but it was more like there was this consuming darkness just eating away at his skin like a parasite.

Thor screamed, and were he a lesser man, the pain would’ve been enough for him to pass out. But he heard Tony scream from behind him and so he grit his teeth and turned his head to his comrade to make sure he was okay.

He was not. The blast from the scepter hit him directly and he was sent flying off the plane he was trying to take down. What’s more, it completely disintegrated his suit. From what Thor could tell, he was also knocked unconscious.

Thor cursed and abandoned his mission of trying to take down the plain. With his good arm, he swung Mjolnir and flew as fast as he could toward Stark. As he grew closer, he realized that the man was indeed unconscious. Not only that, the dark substance was also eating away at his flesh and slowly making its way to his arc reactor.

He heard something from behind, a quick glance revealed that the enemy aircrafts fired missiles at them. Thor cursed once again and summoned his lightning in an attempt to go a little bit faster. His left arm was still being mauled by the mysterious substance and it was excruciating, the lightning dancing on his skin doing nothing but increasing the pain. He can already feel it extending itself, moving to his torso like some kind of parasite.

Thor had never been in this much trouble before. It took him awhile to recognize the emotion allowing adrenaline to pump through his veins; fear. Fear of death. Because he really could die here. Even if he did manage to make it to Stark, would he be able to evade the missiles in time? And even if he could, they’re in the middle of the ocean with grievous wounds that they knew nothing about. Would the others be able to find them? And if they did, will they be able to stop whatever it is the scepter did?

Steve said that it was able to disintegrate someone, which was proven when it completely annihilated Tony’s suit. It looks like an indirect hit grants you a slow death.

He thought of Tony, knocked unconscious and he may never wake up again. Just minutes ago, he was moaning over his crush. He thought of the res t of their team, worst case scenario, they won’t even be able to find their bodies. They would be crushed, Steve would most likely blame himself. He thought of his parents, wondered how they’d react to hearing he died. He hasn’t spoken to them in a while, aside from the occasional letters from his mother.

He thought of Loki, how he’d told him not to wait up for him because worst case scenario, Thor might not be back home until the next morning. But knowing Loki, he wouldn’t listen. He would stay up late, hoping that Thor would be back early so he could welcome him back with a nice cup of tea and cuddles. Loki would keep waiting until the sun came up, and then he’d wait some more, not getting any work done and probably dozing off on the couch, in restless sleep, wondering where Thor was. He’d keep on waiting until Fury would finally make the unfortunate phone call.

Loki would be inconsolable.

Thor’s gripped Mjolnir tighter, summoning more of his lightning, screaming through the pain but eyes burning with determination. He finally, got close enough to grab Stark. Ignoring the pain on his arm, he secured his grip around him while trying to give as much support on his neck. A few meters from hitting the ocean, he jerked Mjolnir to the side, changing their trajectory drastically. He probably got whiplash but at least he managed to keep Tony relatively unharmed.

The missiles hit the ocean, creating a large splash and only a few seconds later, they hit the ocean. It should’ve felt like hitting concrete, but the power that came with his lightning ensured he took little damage. He had wrapped his body around Tony as much as he could so hopefully he wasn’t that hurt either.

The problem now was the water. The saltiness of the ocean against his darkened flesh made Thor want to scream. Even Tony, who was knocked out cold, had his face twisted in pain and discomfort.

Thor let go of Mjolnir, letting it fall down the ocean. He could summon it again later. For now, he needed to keep them both alive. He covered Tony’s nose and mouth before directing his gaze upward. He didn’t want to risk the enemy seeing them and launching more missiles so he stayed down for as long as he could , feeling for Tony’s pulse to make sure he was still okay. He counted the seconds, and when a minute passed, he resurfaced along with Tony.

Tony must’ve been knocked awake during their crash because he was coughing, moving his head around and being generally disoriented.

“Stark. _Stark_ , look at me.” He said, gaining Tony’s attention. A quick glance at the sky revealed that the enemies were gone, thankfully. But now a new problem arose. The dark substance was mere inches away from Tony’s arc reactor and Thor was about minutes away from passing out.

Tony was trying to say something, but his words were slurred and he still looked disoriented. The pain was probably not helping.

“Stark, _listen to me._ ” He gritted his teeth. “I got you, okay? I got you. We’re going to be fine.”

But even he knew that was a lie. He knew that there’s no way to be sure. He can feel the substance creeping across his chest, making it harder to breathe. It only hit his arm, so he can only imagine what Stark must be feeling.

After a few minutes, Tony passed out again and Thor was getting increasingly worried but there’s nothing he could do. He can only focus all his remaining energy on staying awake and trying to keep them afloat.

Thor didn’t know how long they were out there. It could’ve been hours or it could’ve been a mere few minutes. There was no way to tell. Not when Thor was distracted by the numbing pain on his arm, the persistent threat of unconsciousness, and the increasing paranoia which was only quelled by keeping track of Tony’s pulse which was getting weaker and weaker.

Eventually, everything started to blur. He could feel his grip on his friend loosen, but sheer willpower ensured that he never fully let go. The pain became a distant hum and the sound of the waves was almost relaxing, slowly lulling him to sleep.

For some reason, it was getting… a lot easier to breathe? Thor wondered if that was what death felt like. He can practically hear the bells signaling the gates of the afterlife being opened to him, something his mother told him about when he was young.

It sounded eerily similar to the sound of a chopper.

 

* * *

 

 

Thor woke up and he honestly thought he was dead. He saw nothing but white. What gave it away was the stinging pain on his arm, and he realized he was in the Stark tower’s infirmary.

“Oh, thank God.” He turned to see Bruce, completely disheveled and looking like he’d been crying.

“What-“ he tried to get up but couldn’t, instead falling back to the bed and groaning in pain.

“Hey.” He said, in a hushed, calming tone that still managed to sound reprimanding. “You’re alright, okay? Just lay back and rest. Those guys really did a number on you.”

“Stark.” He choked out, trying to get back up despite the pain. “Is Stark okay-?!”

“Easy there, big guy.” Clint spoke up, and only then did Thor realize the whole team was there. “He’s right here, although he hasn’t woken up yet.”

Tony had a breathing mask on, but considering the state Thor remembered him to be in, that was understandable. Burnt flesh littered across his skin but at least it didn’t look like he was being burned alive slowly anymore.

Natasha was sitting next to him- he didn’t comment on the redness of her eyes- while Bruce sat next to Thor’s bed. Clint was on the far corner, looking down but Thor could hear him sniffling softly. Steve was by the door, smiling at him in relief even as his tears threatened to spill.

“You remember what happened?”

“Mostly.” He grumbled. “Just up until the part where we were floating around in the ocean.”

“All of Tony’s tech was completely destroyed. Luckily your SI watch was still functioning so we tracked you through that.” Steve explained.

“Strange was here earlier.” Nat said, her voice cracking. “Out of anyone, he knew the most about the scepter and its effects. He said that this much damage was concerning, but it probably won’t kill you guys.”

“He wasn’t sure about any lasting effects though.” Clint muttered. “Wasn’t even sure when, or if you guys would wake up at all.”

“Magic’s some complicated stuff and there hasn’t been any record of anyone surviving an attack from that scepter.” Steve said. “But he said he doesn’t think anyone’s ever taken an _indirect_ hit before so there was hope.”

Thor did not like seeing his friends like this so he forced a smile, even though he knew they would be able to tell it was fake. “Well, it’s going to take a lot more than that to bring down a god.”

At the very least, they all snorted, giving him an exasperated smile and he was pretty sure Clint rolled his eyes.

“And I doubt Stark would kick the bucket that easily. Even if he took a direct hit, he’d probably stay alive just out of spite.” He said. “He’s too annoying to die.”

“Fuck you, Point Break.”

Nat jumped to her feet, leaning over to Tony. The rest did the same, even Thor who was only held back by Bruce’s arm and reprimanding look.

“Tony…” Nat whispered breathlessly, looking like she was about to burst into tears.

Tony couldn’t even open his eyes properly, it alternated between closed and half-lidded. Thor could see his hand spasming, probably from the pain. But despite that, he managed to smile slyly at them. “Aww… were you guys worried about me?”

This earned several wet chuckles and Clint croaked out an “As if.”

Tony sighed. “I feel like shit… and I can’t move.”

“Strange is working on that.” Steve explained, putting a hand on Tony’s shoulder. “We’re not sure what that thing did to you, but I promise you, you’re gonna be alright.”

Tony didn’t look entirely convinced. But it didn’t change the fact that that was what he needed at that moment, so he smiled. “Thanks, Cap.”

His eyes wandered around the room before falling to Thor. “And thanks, Point Break. For having my back, back there.”

Thor snorted. “Couldn’t really let you die now, could I?”

He grinned. “I owe you one.”

Tony grinned back, before turning his attention back to Steve. “So… I recall you promised me pizza and B99?”

Steve chuckled. “Get some rest, Tony.”

He pouted. “Fine, but there better be pepperoni slices and a laptop here when I wake up.”

 

* * *

 

 

Thor was released only a few hours later. They might not know much about the Dark Scepter but they also knew next to nothing about Mjolnir. Strange theorized that its power managed to counter the scepter’s and it stopped Thor from being ash.

The damage was done though, but at least Thor got away with only not being able to use his arm for a few weeks. He was lucky that whatever spell they got hit with didn’t affect his lungs since Thor vaguely recalled it spreading to his torso and making it difficult for him to breathe. A quick x-ray revealed that he was fine though. Of course, Thor was still required to have regular check-ups led by Strange to make sure there weren’t any side effects.

Tony will be bedridden for a while but Thor had no doubt that the engineer will be back on his feet in no time. So he bid him farewell- Tony just waved him off since he was too engrossed with watching his favorite tv series with Bruce- and went home.

Thor got back when the sun was starting to set. Loki had been expecting him home since the night before and Thor had gotten several missed calls and texts from him asking where he was and how he was getting worried. He didn’t know what he could say though, so he opted to explain to his boyfriend personally.

He opened the door to their apartment and Loki was asleep on the couch with dark bags under his eyes, he must have not slept at all last night. It pained Thor to know that he worried him so much. He quietly shut the door behind him and went to their room to grab a blanket. He planned on letting his boyfriend rest but Loki was ever the light sleeper.

“-Hm..?” Loki mumbled dumbly, slowly registering that it was Thor he was looking at and this was not a dream. He threw a quick glance at the clock and, seeing the time, turned back to glare at his boyfriend appearing to be ready to give him a good scolding until he seemingly just noticed that Thor’s arm was in a cast supported by a sling. His eyes widened in horror. “What happened?!”

“I had…” Thor muttered as Loki fussed over him. “… a bad day at work.”

“No shit!” he hissed and how rare was it for his Shakespearian boyfriend to curse. “Is that- why is your skin _black_?!”

“I was with the team.” He explained. SHIELD had already prepared a cover story for them. “Someone attacked Stark with some type of acid, I was nearby and it got a good hit at me.”

“ _Acid_?!” Loki looked like he was on the verge of a heart attack.

“ _Loki_ , love.” He smiled gently at him- he just couldn’t help being so happy that he actually got to see Loki again when hours ago, he thought he was going to die.“I’m _fine_. It’s okay.”

“It’s _not_ okay!” he was almost hysterical. Thor could see the worry and panic in his eyes. “I’m going to get some herbs. I learned a few healing recipes as a child, you’re going to let me look at that- but I suppose it might get infected if we take it out of the cast now… did you have someone tend to it properly?! Please tell me you did. Gods, you’re going to be the death of me, you oaf. Does it still sting? If I can’t put any herbal medicine or ointment on it, I may be able to fix you up some tea to soothe the pain-“

Loki was rambling. He tended to do that whenever he was worried and Thor couldn’t help smiling fondly at him. He was _so_ happy he got to see Loki again. They say near-death experiences always made people sentimental.

If they hadn’t been so lucky yesterday, Thor would’ve never come home today. And honestly? It was just too hard to imagine. Leaving Loki all alone, crying over his death. He didn’t want Loki to cry. He wanted him to be happy. Preferably with him. Thor wanted to sit on the couch, chatting with Loki as he makes him his magically exquisite tea. He wanted watch Loki laugh and be overdramatic over his friends. He wants to see Loki always smiling, always because of him. He wants to spend the rest of his life seeing Loki smile.

He wanted to spend the rest of his life with Loki.

“Thor?” he was snapped out of his thoughts when Loki caressed his cheek. Loki’s expression was filled with worry, but perhaps he saw something in his eyes or maybe it was something else entirely. But it slowly morphed into fear. “Thor, my love, what’s wrong? Please talk to me.”

But that was the thing. Nothing’s wrong. Everything was okay now, especially since he was with Loki again.

He brought one hand up to his face to squeeze Loki’s hand reassuringly and the other to caress Loki’s cheek back, bringing him closer so Thor could kiss him passionately.

It was okay now. He’ll make sure of it.

Their lips parted, and Thor was happy to see the worry disappear from Loki’s eyes, to be replaced by tender love.

“Loki?”

“… Yeah?”

“Will you marry me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so to be fair, it's a really eventful chapter. So I hope it makes up for it!
> 
> Also, I don't know when I'll be able to post again. Because I still have one last BIG exam that I need to study for, then afterwards there's requirements and then I need to look for a job... JUST PRAY FOR ME ALRIGHT ILY THANKS FOR STILL SUPPORTING THIS. QAQ
> 
> I really love writing for this pair, and I really want to get back to writing but it probably won't happen for at least another month so please bear with me.
> 
> Also, this fic is less Loki/Thor and more Avengers feel-good friendship. Are you guys okay with that? Should I edit the tags or something? Do you feel like you're not getting what you clicked on this fic for? Please tell me! And I have to be up really early tomorrow but I REALLY wanted to finish this before going to bed. It's already midnight, so no time to proofread. I'm so sorry for any mistakes and if it feels a bit rushed. If I ever find the time, I'll try and edit this. But let me know what you think~
> 
> Thank you for reading ~ !!


	5. Something I need to work on

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thor is not good at making decisions or dealing with pressure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK!!! Passed my exams, found a job, and NOW I'M HERE!! ;D
> 
> Hopefully, I can get back into writing smoothly. Honestly, this thing took a while. So I hope ya'll can be patient. Thank you for your support!

“What the _fuck_ , Borson?” Tony said from his bed. They were all gathered together in his private room in the Stark tower’s infirmary floor. Thor had just told them what happened, and they were not impressed. Except for maybe Clint, who just looked amused but was smart enough not to say anything since Natasha was sending him death glares.

“Hey, c’mon guys.” Bruce said, trying to salvage the situation. “Give him a break, he’s been through a lot the past couple of hours. We should be happy for him right now.”

“Yeah!” Clint said from the table he probably shouldn’t be sitting on. “Congrats, buddy!”

“I have heard that near death experiences make people more sentimental.” Nat told Steve who sighed.

“Thor, it’s not that I’m not happy for you. I am.” Steve said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Congratulations. You two are perfect for each other.”

“Thank you.” He grinned.

“But!” Tony piped up.

“ _But_ ,” Steve took a deep breath. “Couldn’t you have waited until _after_ this mission?”

“True love doesn’t wait!” Clint yelled.

“Yes, it does!” Nat snapped. “That is literally the quote! True love waits!”

“But apparently Thor Borson doesn’t.” Bruce muttered.

“Exactly!” Thor nodded. “Thank you, Bruce.”

“That wasn’t a compliment.”

“Does Fury know about this?” Nat asked.

“… Does he _have_ to know about this?” he shot back.

“Yes.” They all said in unison, making Thor curse under his breath.

“SHIELD tries to protect our immediate family member as much as they're capable, so they need to know about all our immediate family members. Our contract with them obliges us to disclose it, since they could be used as leverage against us and endanger the entire team.” Nat explained. “From what I heard, didn’t he already have a talk with you about your relationship with Loki?”

Thor tensed up but said nothing and Nat raised an unimpressed eyebrow. Steve, already knowing about the conversation, sighed. “Fury’s with Strange at the temple in Katmandu. I won’t report this right now and let you figure out how to tell him but I _highly_ suggest you do so once he gets back.”

“Translation, if you don’t do it, Cap here will.” Clint said.

Thor nodded. “Thank you, Captain. I appreciate it.”

“So…” Tony piped up. “When’s the wedding?”

“We haven’t decided yet.” Thor said, tension leaving his body and eternally grateful to get his mind out of the inevitable conversation with his boss. “Loki was too preoccupied in making sure I wasn’t dying so we didn’t really have much time to sort out the details.”

“What do _you_ want, though?” Nat asked curiously.

“Are you going to have a Norwegian wedding?” Bruce asked. “… Whatever that is?”

“Oh, is it like a traditional, sort of Viking wedding?” Clint piped up, suddenly very excited.

“What does a Viking wedding even look like?” Nat asked. Clint paused, then shrugged.

Tony cleared his throat. “Friday?”

“I’ll pull up a screen immediately, sir.” The AI said and did so.

“Ooooh, an outdoor wedding?” Tony said, looking at the pictures that showed up in the google search.

“A week?” Nat raised an eyebrow.

“That’s one long party.” Clint whistled. “But it _would_ be on-brand with Party Animal and Sir Extra- trademarked’s wedding.”

“Extra-trademarked?” Nat asked.

“Because he’s not _just_ Extra with a capital E.” he explained. “He’s _the_ Extra.”

A pause.

“Why do I understand what you mean?” Bruce said, looking so confused.

“Yeah, it kinda makes me angry.” Nat crossed her arms.

“He just explained Loki so perfectly.” Tony said. “Friday, make a note of that. I’ll squeeze that in my Best Man speech.”

“Hold up, who said _you_ would be Best Man?” Clint said.

“Who else would it be?”

“I think Thor and I are a lot closer.” Bruce said, earning a few surprised looks.

“Excuse you, have you and lover boy over here been in a life-changing near-death experience? I don’t think so.”

“Is that what defines friendship nowadays?” Steve asked, but was ignored as the others continued discussing ideas for a wedding that wasn’t theirs. So he turned to Thor. “What do you think?”

Thor hummed, looking at the pictures displayed on the holographic scene. “I do like the idea of an outdoor wedding.”

Steve snorted. “Well, whatever makes you happy buddy.”

“Thank you, Steve.”

“Just, for the record, I’m best man, right?”

“HOLD IT RIGHT FUCKING THERE ROGERS-“

 

* * *

 

Thor sighed once he got out of the taxi. One thing he missed about being able to use both arms is driving. To be honest, his arm was feeling a lot better and he could probably manage getting to the Stark tower but that was a definite no for Loki and Thor already felt guilty about making him worry.

“I’m home!” he called out once he entered their apartment and immediately heard the rushed footsteps.

“Oh, thank the gods.” His boyfrie- _fiancé_ rushed to hug him, mindful of Thor’s arm.

“Babe. Loki. Love, I’m fine.” He insisted, unable to help his fond smile as he bent down to give him a peck on the lips. On the other hand, Loki was pouting, which was adorable.

“You won’t be if you keep pushing yourself.” He huffed, pulling away to cross his arms. “Honestly, why did you have to go to work? After what happened yesterday, you’d think they’d have the decency to let you have a little time off.”

“ _Loki_ , it’s fine. I planned on visiting Stark, anyway. And we needed to have a meeting about what happened, it’s not a big deal, honestly.” He said. Loki didn’t seem convinced though, so Thor sighed and snaked his arms around his fiancé’s waist. “Besides, they’re my friends. I had to go over there and bring them the _wonderful_ news personally.”

Loki huffed. “Don’t try to sweet talk your way out of this Borson.”

“I would never.” He said with a tone of pure innocence but a mischievous smirk that contradicted it. It was so infectious that Loki couldn’t help wrapping his arms around Thor’s neck and pulling him in for another kiss, this one lasting a bit longer.

“Have you told your parents yet?” Loki asked, in between kisses. Thor only hummed in reply and Loki had to forcefully pull away, giving him an unimpressed look while Thor whined.

“Yes, of course. You know they love you so they’re really stoked.” He insisted trying to return to their previous activities but Loki pushed his face away with one hand.

“We’re not fucking while you’re in that cast.”

“Why not?” he whined.

“What are you, a child?” he rolled his eyes. “You could hurt yourself, you fool and I won’t be complicit in that.”

“But I’m fine!” he grumbled. “Honestly? It feels like I can take the cast off already.”

“If you do that, I swear I will knock you out and tie you to the bed.” He said, getting up and heading to the living room.

Thor whistled. “We’ve never tried that before.”

This earned him a pillow to the face, but he only laughed it off and went to join Loki on the couch, where he was reading another one of his old-timey books.

“How about you? Have you told your sister yet?” Thor asked. Family was a very sensitive subject with Loki but Thor knew that Loki never met his mother before and his father died when he was a child. His half sister was the one who raised him and she was the only family he had.

When Loki kept silent, Thor knew the answer and he couldn’t help but sigh. “Why not?”

“I don’t really know how to break it to her…” he muttered.

Thor frowned and hesitated. “Do you… do you think she won’t approve of me?”

“No!” he said, a bit too hastily. “Not at all. I think she’ll like you just fine. And even if she didn’t, it’s not like it would matter. I love you and I would marry you, regardless of what anyone thinks.”

He couldn’t help but grin at those words. “Thank you.” He bent down to kiss him again and this time, Loki didn’t protest.

“So what’s the problem then?” he asked once they pulled away.

“Well…” he said, hesitantly. “You know my sister is a bit… eccentric, right?”

“… Right?” he said slowly.

“So…” Loki sighed. “I suppose it’s not as much that I’m afraid of how she’ll react to you as it is how she’ll react  _in general_.”

“… Okay, I think I understand.” He nodded. It sounded like Loki had a lot in common with his sister, but Thor thought it wise not to tell him that. “You still need to tell her though.”

He sighed. “I know, I promise I will.”

“Oh? She finally got a phone?” Thor asked, remembering all the times Loki mentioned how his sister hated technology.

For some reason, Loki tensed up. “Ah… yes. It’s a very old model though, and she hates using it so she told me it’s only for emergencies.”

The way he said it was just the tiniest bit rushed. Thor stared at his boyfriend before shrugging. “Okay, when are you going to call her?”

“Tomorrow.”

He nodded. “Okay, I need to be back for a check-up tomorrow, so just tell me how that works out.”

Loki nodded.

They spent the rest of the day cuddled on the couch. Normally, Loki would be splayed on top of Thor, but since Thor was injured Loki insisted that he was in no condition to be spoiling Loki. Thor disagreed but hey, it’s nice to be the little spoon every once in a while. Being able to just lie down on Loki’s chest and listen to his heartbeat in their living room while thinking about their eventual marriage, Thor wished he could live in this moment forever. The feeling of Loki carding his fingers through Thor’s hair while he hums an unfamiliar yet nostalgic song is utter bliss.

Thor was on the verge of drifting off to sleep when he heard the familiar tone of Loki’s phone going off. He shifted from underneath him which was not ideal at all considering how comfortable Thor already was, and he let that be known with a groan. Loki only snorted as he grabbed his phone and scrolled through it. Thankfully, he didn’t stop petting Thor’s hair.

Loki paused. “Thor?”

“Hrm?” he mumbled, not entirely conscious.

“Why is Stark e-mailing me _very_ detailed wedding plans?”

He snorted. “We’ll talk about it later… _Cuddle time_.”

Loki huffed but said nothing more and started massaging Thor’s scalp which was _heavenly_.

Thor was honestly surprised at how quickly he fell asleep. Loki’s hands really were magic.

 

* * *

 

Thor wished he could’ve spent the entire next day with Loki, but Strange had specifically instructed him to be at the Stark tower that day so they can monitor his vitals and make sure his arm won’t fall off or something. Honestly, he’d gladly lose an arm for more time with Loki though. He had woken up from his nap the previous day with Loki absentmindedly caressing his cast, drawing random patterns of nothing across it and Thor wasn’t sure how, but he could almost feel the warmth and tenderness of Loki’s touch through the cast. Unfortunately, he stopped upon seeing that Thor was awake and made him get up so he could prepare dinner. Thor would’ve gladly starved to stay where he was, but on the other hand, Loki’s tea was to die for.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand, Thor would’ve _greatly_  appreciated it if someone gave him a heads up about Fury being back.

“Sit down, Mr. Borson.” Strange said and Thor realized that it might have been very suspicious of him to stand on the doorway of the infirmary like an idiot while wearing what he imagined was a face of pure shock and panic. Fury and Strange only looked at him strangely but the other Avengers gave him looks that varied from supportive to pity to amused at his misery.

Thor nodded dumbly before taking a seat at the bed where he had woken up from his mini coma just the other day.

“How’s Stark?” he asked.

“Alive, and fortunately for all of humanity, it looks like it’s going to stay that way.” He grinned.

Strange rolled his eyes but Thor didn’t miss the small fond smile he tried to hide behind a clipboard. “He’ll be fine, although I can’t promise anything about the state of his body. He can’t do anything strenuous and I don’t know how long that will last. All we can do is monitor him, but I’m researching ways that might reverse its effects.”

“Turns out, whatever that staff thing-a-ma-jig did qualifies as a full-on curse. So lucky me, I guess.” He sighed.

“You’ll be fine, Stark.” Strange spoke with a hard tone that left no room for arguments.

“I know, doc.” He smiled weakly, giving him a thumbs up. “Don’t worry, I trust you.”

Strange smiled softly and Thor wanted to ask why his eyes were filled with guilt but decided to keep that question to himself. He glanced at the other avengers, other than Tony, who were all trying to hide their fond or exasperated smiles. It looks like the accident aside, things are working out well for their resident billionaire. Strange seemed to snap himself out of it and turned back to Thor, schooling his expression back into one of pure professionalism. He started peeling the cast off while explaining.

“The curse uses life energy and converts it into dark matter that eats away at anything it comes into contact with. Usually, it happens instantly, but you two were lucky. It completely decimated Stark’s suit, and it still managed to do a lot of damage even with its residue. Honestly, I don’t know how your arm is still intact but going by my examination of Stark’s condition earlier, I imagine that you won’t be able to use it for a wh-“

Strange was speechless when the cast was completely removed and so was everyone else in the room. Even before Strange examined Tony, they were all aware of his general condition. Moving took a great deal of effort and exerting himself sometimes lead to excruciating pain. His entire body was littered with black marks that crawled across his skin in various patterns. Some taking the shape of large birth marks that covered a great deal of skin while others were thin and branched off like blood veins. Thor had none of those, his arm was completely normal as if nothing had happened to it.

It was disorienting for Thor, who clearly remembered the image of a black, gaping hole in his arm only a few days prior. But now there was nothing, not even a scar.

“So… I guess you’re a fast healer?” Tony tried to lighten the situation but couldn’t mask the shock in his tone. Thor didn’t have time to reply when Strange pulled him just a tad bit roughly. It was no way to treat someone with an injured arm but then again, someone with an injured arm would’ve probably felt pain, which Thor did not.

“This is impossible…” Strange muttered to himself. “Can you try moving your arm around?”

Thor did, he followed Strange’s instructions; lifting his arm up, stretching it, rotating his wrist, flexing his fingers, and even wrote something down. It was terrible, since it wasn’t his dominant hand, but he did it and felt no pain.

“… Is it the whole Norse God thing?” Clint asked.

“That would explain why he didn’t die, but to my knowledge in shouldn’t have completely removed the curse.” Strange explained, frowning deeply and continuing to examine Thor’s arm even though there’s clearly nothing there. “This makes no sense…”

“Well, to be fair, Thor’s power doesn’t make any sense.” Steve shrugged. “I guess none of us just understood how little sense it made until the big shot wizard with a doctorate degree said it.”

“How can it not make sense?” Thor frowned. “It’s a straightforward power.”

“It’s the only power here that’s not grounded in logic.” Tony snapped. “Big green over here has radiation and I have engineering. You’re literally a walking character from a children’s storybook.”

“A children’s book that no one would buy.” Clint snorted. “Like, a magic hammer? Really?”

Thor was about to retort when Strange cut them off. “I’ll admit that I’m not entirely familiar with Norse magic, but I’ve never heard of magic that can allow someone to completely nullify a curse subconsciously. But if something like that exists…”

Strange paused, thinking deeply for long enough to make Thor nervous.

“I’ll have to do some further examinations. If whatever power Mjolnir granted you managed to heal you completely, maybe we can recreate it to help with Stark’s recovery.”

Thor perked up. “That’s possible?”

“I don’t know but I’m willing to try.” Strange said, expression serious and Thor never liked him more. If he hadn’t approved of the man to date of one of his dearest friends before, he did now.

“So am I.” Thor said. “What do you need?”

“Whoa whoa, hold up there, wizard.” Tony said and Bruce had to stop him from attempting to get up. “You’re not going to experiment on my friend here, are you?”

“Relax, Stark. I’ll only have him answer some questions and test out his powers. As a doctor, all life takes priority.” Strange said. “To be sure, I’ll have to do a lot of research on your field of magic. It might take some time, so if you know anything that could help…”

“SHIELD has compiled all knowledge about Mjolnir and anything related to it ever recorded in history, from official literature to fairy tales passed down by old men to their grandchildren. I’ll have them issue you a copy, although it’ll take a while for you to go through all of it.” Fury said.

“It’s a start, at least.” He nodded.

“I’m sure the Avengers would be able to collect more information that would prove to be very useful to you in their investigation.”

“I’m sorry?” Steve asked, frowning. “What investigation?”

Fury hasn’t issued them a mission yet, and for good reason. Until five minutes ago one of their best fighters was one arm down and their tech expert and also main support/fighter is incapacitated, not to mention the fact that they have no idea what happened to the weapon that did this to them. Going out with an enemy capable of exterminating all of them while their team’s fighting ability has been knocked down several pegs was not the best call.

“There’s been some suspicious activities in Norway and Agent Hill reported that it’s very likely it could be Hydra and that the scepter may be there. This isn’t a stake out; I just need Agent Romanoff and Agent Barton to infiltrate a few key locations from Agent Hill’s report and since we’re dealing with something big here, I need all of you there as an emergency backup.”

“Even me?” Tony asked.

“Yes.” Fury sighed. “Obviously you’re not allowed to go on the field, but unfortunately we don’t have anyone with the same level of tech expertise as you.”

“Duh.” He rolled his eyes.

“Wait, wouldn’t sending him where SHIELD is be putting him in unnecessary risk?” Strange asked. “Shouldn’t he just stay here so he can recuperate?”

Steve cleared his throat. “What he said.”

“He might be necessary for the investigation, but SHIELD will make sure he’s well-protected.” Fury said. “Besides, I doubt he’ll be safer anywhere else than with the Avengers.”

Strange looked like he was about to argue but Steve stopped him. “It’s Tony’s call. You can’t make him go if he’s not up for it.”

All eyes went to Tony, who looked disoriented about having everyone’s attention all of a sudden, which was a first.

“I mean… I’m sure I can manage.” He shrugged. “So long as there’s a nice bed wherever we’re going, I’ll be fine.”

“What- Stark! Do you realize how serious-“

“I’ll be fine, Doc.” He reassured. “I’ll still be resting; I’ll just have a different view is all.”

Strange frowned. He stared at Tony, pondering for a moment before sighing and turning to Fury. “His condition may have stabilized but we have no clue if the dark matter might act up again. It’s dangerous to leave it unchecked so I think it’d be best for me to come along to monitor his condition.”

Strange couldn’t see it but the Avengers’ eyes simultaneously widened. They all turned to Tony, whose jaw had dropped and looked at them helplessly. But they just smirked back at him, Clint was even nudging him playfully which earned him a death glare. Meanwhile, Fury raised an eyebrow, ignoring his team’s antics. “That’s your call and I can’t say I don’t approve.”

Clint mouthed the word ‘approve’ and Natasha had to cover her mouth to stop herself from snickering. He kind of sounded like a father giving his blessing to the boy who wants to take his daughter to prom, and they were all thinking it. Tony glared daggers at them, but if he could he would’ve sent Clint flying with his blasters by now. Bruce placed a calming hand on his shoulder but he didn’t really manage to hide his amused smile.

“Wonderful. I’ll have to inform Wong and prepare for my departure but it should only take me a few days.” Strange said. He nodded towards the other Avengers and gave Tony a reprimanding look before leaving through a portal.

“Well, that’s convenient.” Clint muttered.

“So how long will we be in Norway?” Nat asked.

“It should only take us a month or two, right?” Bruce asked.

“You’ll be staying there for a year,” Fury said which stopped everyone in their tracks. “Maybe more depending on the situation. Hydra’s gotten a hold of something just as, if not more dangerous than a nuclear weapon. Tracking them down and retrieving the scepter is SHIELD’s top priority, so we’re dedicating all our manpower to it and as much of our time as necessary. Until that scepter is in our custody, you will have no other missions. Focus all your energy into finding it, you leave for Norway tomorrow.”

There was a pause, the avengers exchanging looks before Rogers hastily uttered a “Yes, sir.”

Fury gave them a suspicious look, but he was used to their antics at this point and brushed it off. He left the room and a few moments later, they could hear the elevator opening and closing, taking Fury to his private floor. Once they were sure he was gone, all eyes turned to Thor, who looked at them helplessly.

“I really wanted to spend the rest of the day teasing Stark once Strange left.” He said miserably and Bruce gave him a comforting pat on the back.

“Well, too bad.” Tony huffed. “Get up there and break it to the boss.”

“Do I have to?”

“It’s that or you can leave Loki for at least a year.” Clint shrugged. “I don’t think he’d appreciate a long-distance relationship just after you’ve proposed.”

“I don’t think he’ll appreciate me going back to work just after I almost lost an arm.” Thor grumbled.

Clint whistled, remembering Thor recounting how worried Loki had been in the story of what lead to the untimely proposal. “Man, he’ll probably be pissed.”

“I can picture him barging in here and picking a fight with Fury.” Nat said.

Thor paled while Tony yelped out. “Don’t make a scandal in my tower!”

“Tony, you need have to calm down.” Bruce said worriedly, looking at Tony’s vitals.

“Hey, don’t worry about it.” Steve said, placing a hand on Thor’s shoulder. “I’m sure Fury will understand. If you ask, maybe he’ll even let you take a little time off.”

Thor hesitated. “You think so?”

“Yeah.”

 

* * *

 

Fury did not understand. Obviously he couldn’t force Thor to cancel the engagement but he didn’t budge when Thor asked some time off either. It was understandable, really. It was the first time any of them has ever been seriously hurt in a mission before, aside from a few falls and technical difficulties during their first few months working together. So this might just be the biggest crisis the Avengers have had to face since they formed their team. It made perfect sense that Fury would want Thor back in action as soon as he was capable.

That didn’t mean Thor had to be happy about it though. He sulked, trudging back to his and Loki’s shared apartment, dreading how he’ll tell his fiancé. Loki will be so disappointed. Not to mention how he’ll react to seeing Thor’s arm out of his cast so soon, he might just make one himself. And finding out that Thor will have to go back to work? His friends were right, Loki might just storm the Stark tower and commit murder. Maybe he should’ve brought one of his friends as moral support… or at least as help to hold Loki back and try to talk some sense into him.

“I’m home!” he called out, but there was no answer. All his anxiety was immediately replaced with worry and he hurried inside, immediately going into Avenger mode, hand tense and ready to call Mjolnir to him at any given moment. If something had happened to Loki, he _swore to God_ -

“Loki!” he cried out, more than a little relieved when he found Loki in the kitchen, though he tried not to show it too much. Loki flinched, he seemed to have been lost in thought when Thor arrived, which was strange. “Is everything alright?”

“Of course.” He said, a little too quickly. Thor frowned. He walked up to his fiancé and wrapped his arms around him from behind.

“Loki, what’s wrong?” he asked, placing a kiss on the back of his ear.

“It’s nothing, Thor.”

“You’re usually a better liar than this. Now I know it’s really bad.” He said and Loki snorted but said nothing. Neither did Thor, he knew Loki well enough already. Despite being so good with words, sometimes he just needed time to find the right ones for personal situations like this.

“I called my sister.” He said, finally and Thor tried not to tense up.

“Oh?” he said, hoping he sounded casual. “And…? What did she say?”

“She… wasn’t upset, per se.” he said carefully. “Just a bit… surprised.”

“She was upset.” Thor’s voice was filled with dread and his hold around his fiancé tightened.

“No! Not… I mean, it’s not for the reason you think.” He said. “I told her about you and she thinks… well, she doesn’t hate you. It’s just… she’s not too happy about me marrying someone without introducing them to her first.”

Thor blinked. “That’s… fair. But you said that she didn’t like company? And she lives in Norway.”

“Right… which is why she decided to make an exception this time.”

“… An exception?”

“She… she wants us to go to Norway.” Loki blurted out, probably hoping to get it over with. “She wants us to stay at her house and get to know you and plan our wedding there. I know it’s unreasonable, and I tried to convince her you have work but she insisted that if you truly loved me, you’d just go on leave! I’m so sorry, but she said that if we’re not in Norway by tomorrow, she would put an end to the engagement!”

Loki looked panicked, his hands were even trembling slightly and his eyes held a desperate plea.

Thor only looked at him as several pieces clicked into place.

 

* * *

 

Everyone in the room was giving Thor an disapproving look and, frankly, it was making him feel uncomfortable.

“What was I supposed to do!?” he blurted out.

“Tell the truth!?” Bruce snapped. “Why didn’t you just tell him that Fury was sending us on a mission!?”

“Because he was upset!” he said desperately. “I didn’t want to make him _more_ upset!”

“That’s-!” Nat raked her hand through her hair in frustration. “ _Thor_ , that’s not an excuse!”

“I know it’s not!” he said. “But- this is perfect isn’t it? Avengers Security is supposed to be under Stark Industries. And I happen to be close friends with the owner.”

“I can’t believe you made me an unwilling accomplice.” Tony grumbled.

“ _It makes perfect sense_ ,” he said. “That, as one of the core members, I’ll be involved in the Avengers’ expansion project to European countries. And, _oh_! Would you look at that? Since legendary Anthony Stark’s dear ol’ friend is getting married in Norway, might as well start there, _right_?”

“ _Thor_.” Steve hissed. “You can’t do this. You’re lying to him!”

“If you want to marry Loki, then you need have to tell him the truth eventually.” Clint said.

Thor looked like he was going to argue, but stopped upon seeing the look Steve was giving him. He closed his mouth, pondering on his friends' words for a moment before sighing. “I know. I… I will. I promise, I will. Just… give me some time. These last few days have been rough for him.”

Steve’s expression softened. “Yeah… I’m sure it has.”

His friends shared a few looks before looking defeated.

“Fine. It’s not like we would just out you like that, anyway.” Steve sighed and Thor’s expression brightened. “Listen Thor, we won’t meddle with your business but you have to understand-“

“I know.” He said, not lacking in conviction but very much so in enthusiasm. “Don’t worry. I swear, I’ll tell him soon.”

Steve nodded, expression both serious and empathetic. “Good, now c’mon. We have a flight to prepare for.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked it!
> 
> This was all over the place, but I decided that it's not good to drag out scenes just because you don't know how to end them. Let me know what you think! At least there's a lot of things that happened so... substance over form, I guess? Idk, it's been a rough year.

**Author's Note:**

> More details next chapter. I hope you look forward to it! For now, I hope you liked the dynamic. Not gonna lie, I kinda wrote Thor with more of Chris Hemsworth's playful personality than his actual serious one. Tell me what you think!
> 
> I actually began writing this on my phone, in the car. So sorry if the spacing is a bit excessive. I'd edit it, but it's already 2am so whatever, y'know? Tell me if it bothers you though, maybe I'll fix it tomorrow.


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